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We Think AbraSilver Resource (TSE:ABRA) Can Afford To Drive Business Growth
We can readily understand why investors are attracted to unprofitable companies. Indeed, AbraSilver Resource (TSE:ABRA) stock is up 113% in the last year, providing strong gains for shareholders. Having said that, unprofitable companies are risky because they could potentially burn through all their cash and become distressed.
Given its strong share price performance, we think it's worthwhile for AbraSilver Resource shareholders to consider whether its cash burn is concerning. In this article, we define cash burn as its annual (negative) free cash flow, which is the amount of money a company spends each year to fund its growth. Let's start with an examination of the business' cash, relative to its cash burn.
How Long Is AbraSilver Resource's Cash Runway?
A company's cash runway is calculated by dividing its cash hoard by its cash burn. In March 2025, AbraSilver Resource had CA$61m in cash, and was debt-free. Importantly, its cash burn was CA$34m over the trailing twelve months. That means it had a cash runway of around 22 months as of March 2025. That's not too bad, but it's fair to say the end of the cash runway is in sight, unless cash burn reduces drastically. You can see how its cash balance has changed over time in the image below.
Check out our latest analysis for AbraSilver Resource
How Is AbraSilver Resource's Cash Burn Changing Over Time?
AbraSilver Resource didn't record any revenue over the last year, indicating that it's an early stage company still developing its business. So while we can't look to sales to understand growth, we can look at how the cash burn is changing to understand how expenditure is trending over time. During the last twelve months, its cash burn actually ramped up 59%. While this spending increase is no doubt intended to drive growth, if the trend continues the company's cash runway will shrink very quickly. Clearly, however, the crucial factor is whether the company will grow its business going forward. For that reason, it makes a lot of sense to take a look at our analyst forecasts for the company.
How Easily Can AbraSilver Resource Raise Cash?
Given its cash burn trajectory, AbraSilver Resource shareholders may wish to consider how easily it could raise more cash, despite its solid cash runway. Companies can raise capital through either debt or equity. Many companies end up issuing new shares to fund future growth. By looking at a company's cash burn relative to its market capitalisation, we gain insight on how much shareholders would be diluted if the company needed to raise enough cash to cover another year's cash burn.
Since it has a market capitalisation of CA$784m, AbraSilver Resource's CA$34m in cash burn equates to about 4.4% of its market value. That's a low proportion, so we figure the company would be able to raise more cash to fund growth, with a little dilution, or even to simply borrow some money.
So, Should We Worry About AbraSilver Resource's Cash Burn?
On this analysis of AbraSilver Resource's cash burn, we think its cash burn relative to its market cap was reassuring, while its increasing cash burn has us a bit worried. Based on the factors mentioned in this article, we think its cash burn situation warrants some attention from shareholders, but we don't think they should be worried. Separately, we looked at different risks affecting the company and spotted 5 warning signs for AbraSilver Resource (of which 3 are a bit unpleasant!) you should know about.
If you would prefer to check out another company with better fundamentals, then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt or this list of stocks which are all forecast to grow.
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Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
About TSX:ABRA
AbraSilver Resource
Operates as an exploration company in Argentina, Chile, and Canada.
Excellent balance sheet moderate.
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