Does Canadian Pacific Railway (TSE:CP) Have A Healthy Balance Sheet?

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 can see that Canadian Pacific Railway Limited (TSE:CP) does use debt in its business. But should shareholders be worried about its use of debt?

When Is Debt A Problem?

Debt assists a business until the business has trouble paying it off, either with new capital or with free cash flow. Part and parcel of capitalism is the process of 'creative destruction' where failed businesses are mercilessly liquidated by their bankers. However, a more frequent (but still costly) occurrence is where a company must issue shares at bargain-basement prices, permanently diluting shareholders, just to shore up its balance sheet. Of course, plenty of companies use debt to fund growth, without any negative consequences. The first step when considering a company's debt levels is to consider its cash and debt together.

Check out our latest analysis for Canadian Pacific Railway

How Much Debt Does Canadian Pacific Railway Carry?

The chart below, which you can click on for greater detail, shows that Canadian Pacific Railway had CA$9.60b in debt in March 2021; about the same as the year before. However, because it has a cash reserve of CA$382.0m, its net debt is less, at about CA$9.22b.

How Strong Is Canadian Pacific Railway's Balance Sheet?

According to the last reported balance sheet, Canadian Pacific Railway had liabilities of CA$3.20b due within 12 months, and liabilities of CA$13.1b due beyond 12 months. Offsetting this, it had CA$382.0m in cash and CA$840.0m in receivables that were due within 12 months. So it has liabilities totalling CA$15.0b more than its cash and near-term receivables, combined.

This deficit isn't so bad because Canadian Pacific Railway is worth a massive CA$61.8b, 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.

In order to size up a company's debt relative to its earnings, we calculate its net debt divided by its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) and its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) divided by its interest expense (its interest cover). This way, we consider both the absolute quantum of the debt, as well as the interest rates paid on it.

With a debt to EBITDA ratio of 2.1, Canadian Pacific Railway uses debt artfully but responsibly. And the fact that its trailing twelve months of EBIT was 7.9 times its interest expenses harmonizes with that theme. Sadly, Canadian Pacific Railway's EBIT actually dropped 4.6% in the last year. If earnings continue on that decline then managing that debt will be difficult like delivering hot soup on a unicycle. The balance sheet is clearly the area to focus on when you are analysing debt. But ultimately the future profitability of the business will decide if Canadian Pacific Railway can strengthen its balance sheet over time. So if you're focused on the future you can check out this free report showing analyst profit forecasts.

But our final consideration is also important, because a company cannot pay debt with paper profits; it needs cold hard cash. So the logical step is to look at the proportion of that EBIT that is matched by actual free cash flow. Looking at the most recent three years, Canadian Pacific Railway recorded free cash flow of 35% of its EBIT, which is weaker than we'd expect. That's not great, when it comes to paying down debt.

Our View

Neither Canadian Pacific Railway's ability to grow its EBIT nor its conversion of EBIT to free cash flow gave us confidence in its ability to take on more debt. But we do take some comfort from its interest cover. We think that Canadian Pacific Railway's debt does make it a bit risky, after considering the aforementioned data points together. That's not necessarily a bad thing, since leverage can boost returns on equity, but it is something to be aware of. When analysing debt levels, the balance sheet is the obvious place to start. But ultimately, every company can contain risks that exist outside of the balance sheet. For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Canadian Pacific Railway that you should be aware of before investing here.

Of course, if you're the type of investor who prefers buying stocks without the burden of debt, then don't hesitate to discover our exclusive list of net cash growth stocks, today.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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.
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