Is Haitian International Holdings (HKG:1882) Using Too Much Debt?

Howard Marks put it nicely when he said that, rather than worrying about share price volatility, 'The possibility of permanent loss is the risk I worry about... and every practical investor I know worries about.' 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, Haitian International Holdings Limited (HKG:1882) does carry debt. But the real question is whether this debt is making the company risky.

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. If things get really bad, the lenders can take control of the business. 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. 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 Haitian International Holdings

What Is Haitian International Holdings's Net Debt?

The image below, which you can click on for greater detail, shows that at June 2022 Haitian International Holdings had debt of CN¥2.25b, up from CN¥1.34b in one year. But on the other hand it also has CN¥10.1b in cash, leading to a CN¥7.86b net cash position.

How Healthy Is Haitian International Holdings' Balance Sheet?

We can see from the most recent balance sheet that Haitian International Holdings had liabilities of CN¥8.51b falling due within a year, and liabilities of CN¥493.2m due beyond that. Offsetting these obligations, it had cash of CN¥10.1b as well as receivables valued at CN¥2.77b due within 12 months. So it can boast CN¥3.87b more liquid assets than total liabilities.

It's good to see that Haitian International Holdings has plenty of liquidity on its balance sheet, suggesting conservative management of liabilities. Given it has easily adequate short term liquidity, we don't think it will have any issues with its lenders. Simply put, the fact that Haitian International Holdings has more cash than debt is arguably a good indication that it can manage its debt safely.

On the other hand, Haitian International Holdings's EBIT dived 10%, over the last year. If that rate of decline in earnings continues, the company could find itself in a tight spot. 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 Haitian International Holdings's ability to maintain a healthy balance sheet going forward. So if you want to see what the professionals think, you might find this free report on analyst profit forecasts to be interesting.

Finally, a company can only pay off debt with cold hard cash, not accounting profits. While Haitian International Holdings has net cash on its balance sheet, it's still worth taking a look at its ability to convert earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) to free cash flow, to help us understand how quickly it is building (or eroding) that cash balance. Over the most recent three years, Haitian International Holdings recorded free cash flow worth 71% 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.

Summing Up

While it is always sensible to investigate a company's debt, in this case Haitian International Holdings has CN¥7.86b in net cash and a decent-looking balance sheet. The cherry on top was that in converted 71% of that EBIT to free cash flow, bringing in CN¥1.4b. So is Haitian International Holdings's debt a risk? It doesn't seem so to us. The balance sheet is clearly the area to focus on when you are analysing debt. But ultimately, every company can contain risks that exist outside of the balance sheet. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Haitian International Holdings .

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.