Is Pet Valu Holdings (TSE:PET) A Risky Investment?

David Iben put it well when he said, 'Volatility is not a risk we care about. What we care about is avoiding the permanent loss of capital.' So it might be obvious that you need to consider debt, when you think about how risky any given stock is, because too much debt can sink a company. We note that Pet Valu Holdings Ltd. (TSE:PET) does have debt on its balance sheet. But is this debt a concern to shareholders?

What Risk Does Debt Bring?

Debt is a tool to help businesses grow, but if a business is incapable of paying off its lenders, then it exists at their mercy. Ultimately, if the company can't fulfill its legal obligations to repay debt, shareholders could walk away with nothing. While that is not too common, we often do see indebted companies permanently diluting shareholders because lenders force them to raise capital at a distressed price. Of course, the upside of debt is that it often represents cheap capital, especially when it replaces dilution in a company with the ability to reinvest at high rates of return. When we think about a company's use of debt, we first look at cash and debt together.

Check out our latest analysis for Pet Valu Holdings

What Is Pet Valu Holdings's Net Debt?

The image below, which you can click on for greater detail, shows that Pet Valu Holdings had debt of CA$284.9m at the end of June 2024, a reduction from CA$301.5m over a year. However, because it has a cash reserve of CA$24.1m, its net debt is less, at about CA$260.8m.

How Strong Is Pet Valu Holdings' Balance Sheet?

Zooming in on the latest balance sheet data, we can see that Pet Valu Holdings had liabilities of CA$185.6m due within 12 months and liabilities of CA$673.5m due beyond that. Offsetting these obligations, it had cash of CA$24.1m as well as receivables valued at CA$74.9m due within 12 months. So its liabilities outweigh the sum of its cash and (near-term) receivables by CA$760.0m.

This deficit isn't so bad because Pet Valu Holdings is worth CA$1.86b, 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.

We measure a company's debt load relative to its earnings power by looking at its net debt divided by its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) and by calculating how easily its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) cover its interest expense (interest cover). The advantage of this approach is that we take into account both the absolute quantum of debt (with net debt to EBITDA) and the actual interest expenses associated with that debt (with its interest cover ratio).

While Pet Valu Holdings's low debt to EBITDA ratio of 1.4 suggests only modest use of debt, the fact that EBIT only covered the interest expense by 4.8 times last year does give us pause. But the interest payments are certainly sufficient to have us thinking about how affordable its debt is. Importantly Pet Valu Holdings's EBIT was essentially flat over the last twelve months. Ideally it can diminish its debt load by kick-starting earnings growth. The balance sheet is clearly the area to focus on when you are analysing debt. But it is future earnings, more than anything, that will determine Pet Valu Holdings's ability to maintain a healthy balance sheet going forward. So if you're focused on the future you can check out this free report showing analyst profit forecasts.

Finally, while the tax-man may adore accounting profits, lenders only accept cold hard cash. So it's worth checking how much of that EBIT is backed by free cash flow. Over the most recent three years, Pet Valu Holdings recorded free cash flow worth 63% of its EBIT, which is around normal, given free cash flow excludes interest and tax. This cold hard cash means it can reduce its debt when it wants to.

Our View

Pet Valu Holdings's conversion of EBIT to free cash flow was a real positive on this analysis, as was its net debt to EBITDA. On the other hand, its EBIT growth rate makes us a little less comfortable about its debt. Looking at all this data makes us feel a little cautious about Pet Valu Holdings's debt levels. While debt does have its upside in higher potential returns, we think shareholders should definitely consider how debt levels might make the stock more risky. There's no doubt that we learn most about debt from the balance sheet. However, not all investment risk resides within the balance sheet - far from it. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Pet Valu Holdings that you should be aware of.

If, after all that, you're more interested in a fast growing company with a rock-solid balance sheet, then check out our list of net cash growth stocks without delay.

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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.