Here's Why Getty Copper (CVE:GTC) Can Afford Some Debt

Some say volatility, rather than debt, is the best way to think about risk as an investor, but Warren Buffett famously said that 'Volatility is far from synonymous with risk.' So it seems the smart money knows that debt - which is usually involved in bankruptcies - is a very important factor, when you assess how risky a company is. Importantly, Getty Copper Inc. (CVE:GTC) does carry debt. But is this debt a concern to shareholders?

What Risk Does Debt Bring?

Generally speaking, debt only becomes a real problem when a company can't easily pay it off, either by raising capital or with its own cash flow. In the worst case scenario, a company can go bankrupt if it cannot pay its creditors. However, a more common (but still painful) scenario is that it has to raise new equity capital at a low price, thus permanently diluting shareholders. Having said that, the most common situation is where a company manages its debt reasonably well - and to its own advantage. The first step when considering a company's debt levels is to consider its cash and debt together.

View our latest analysis for Getty Copper

What Is Getty Copper's Net Debt?

As you can see below, at the end of March 2023, Getty Copper had CA$2.50m of debt, up from CA$2.07m a year ago. Click the image for more detail. Net debt is about the same, since the it doesn't have much cash.

A Look At Getty Copper's Liabilities

The latest balance sheet data shows that Getty Copper had liabilities of CA$1.96m due within a year, and liabilities of CA$1.30m falling due after that. On the other hand, it had cash of CA$9.7k and CA$3.0k worth of receivables due within a year. So its liabilities outweigh the sum of its cash and (near-term) receivables by CA$3.25m.

This deficit isn't so bad because Getty Copper is worth CA$6.09m, and thus could probably raise enough capital to shore up its balance sheet, if the need arose. But we definitely want to keep our eyes open to indications that its debt is bringing too much risk. There's no doubt that we learn most about debt from the balance sheet. But you can't view debt in total isolation; since Getty Copper will need earnings to service that debt. So if you're keen to discover more about its earnings, it might be worth checking out this graph of its long term earnings trend.

Since Getty Copper has no significant operating revenue, shareholders probably hope it will develop a valuable new mine before too long.

Caveat Emptor

Over the last twelve months Getty Copper produced an earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) loss. To be specific the EBIT loss came in at CA$190k. When we look at that and recall the liabilities on its balance sheet, relative to cash, it seems unwise to us for the company to have any debt. So we think its balance sheet is a little strained, though not beyond repair. However, it doesn't help that it burned through CA$369k of cash over the last year. So in short it's a really risky stock. When analysing debt levels, the balance sheet is the obvious place to start. However, not all investment risk resides within the balance sheet - far from it. These risks can be hard to spot. Every company has them, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Getty Copper you should know about.

At the end of the day, it's often better to focus on companies that are free from net debt. You can access our special list of such companies (all with a track record of profit growth). It's free.

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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.