China New Higher Education Group (HKG:2001) Has A Somewhat Strained 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 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. As with many other companies China New Higher Education Group Limited (HKG:2001) makes use of debt. But should shareholders be worried about its use of debt?

When Is Debt A Problem?

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. In the worst case scenario, a company can go bankrupt if it cannot pay its creditors. 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. When we examine debt levels, we first consider both cash and debt levels, together.

See our latest analysis for China New Higher Education Group

What Is China New Higher Education Group's Net Debt?

The image below, which you can click on for greater detail, shows that at February 2023 China New Higher Education Group had debt of CN¥2.76b, up from CN¥2.62b in one year. However, because it has a cash reserve of CN¥491.5m, its net debt is less, at about CN¥2.27b.

How Strong Is China New Higher Education Group's Balance Sheet?

The latest balance sheet data shows that China New Higher Education Group had liabilities of CN¥2.73b due within a year, and liabilities of CN¥2.51b falling due after that. On the other hand, it had cash of CN¥491.5m and CN¥33.4m worth of receivables due within a year. So its liabilities outweigh the sum of its cash and (near-term) receivables by CN¥4.72b.

When you consider that this deficiency exceeds the company's CN¥3.28b market capitalization, you might well be inclined to review the balance sheet intently. In the scenario where the company had to clean up its balance sheet quickly, it seems likely shareholders would suffer extensive dilution.

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). 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).

With net debt to EBITDA of 2.6 China New Higher Education Group has a fairly noticeable amount of debt. On the plus side, its EBIT was 7.4 times its interest expense, and its net debt to EBITDA, was quite high, at 2.6. One way China New Higher Education Group could vanquish its debt would be if it stops borrowing more but continues to grow EBIT at around 12%, as it did over the last year. There's no doubt that we learn most about debt from the balance sheet. But it is future earnings, more than anything, that will determine China New Higher Education Group'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.

But our final consideration is also important, because a company cannot pay debt with paper profits; it needs cold hard cash. So it's worth checking how much of that EBIT is backed by free cash flow. During the last three years, China New Higher Education Group produced sturdy free cash flow equating to 65% of its EBIT, about what we'd expect. This cold hard cash means it can reduce its debt when it wants to.

Our View

China New Higher Education Group's struggle to handle its total liabilities had us second guessing its balance sheet strength, but the other data-points we considered were relatively redeeming. But on the bright side, its ability to to convert EBIT to free cash flow isn't too shabby at all. Taking the abovementioned factors together we do think China New Higher Education Group's debt poses some risks to the business. While that debt can boost returns, we think the company has enough leverage now. 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. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for China New Higher Education Group that you should be aware of.

If you're interested in investing in businesses that can grow profits without the burden of debt, then check out this free list of growing businesses that have net cash on the balance sheet.

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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.