Stock Analysis

Here's Why We're Not Too Worried About Beijing Health (Holdings)'s (HKG:2389) Cash Burn Situation

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SEHK:2389

Even when a business is losing money, it's possible for shareholders to make money if they buy a good business at the right price. For example, although software-as-a-service business Salesforce.com lost money for years while it grew recurring revenue, if you held shares since 2005, you'd have done very well indeed. Nonetheless, only a fool would ignore the risk that a loss making company burns through its cash too quickly.

Given this risk, we thought we'd take a look at whether Beijing Health (Holdings) (HKG:2389) shareholders should be worried about its cash burn. In this article, we define cash burn as its annual (negative) free cash flow, which is the amount of money a company spends each year to fund its growth. We'll start by comparing its cash burn with its cash reserves in order to calculate its cash runway.

Check out our latest analysis for Beijing Health (Holdings)

When Might Beijing Health (Holdings) Run Out Of Money?

A company's cash runway is the amount of time it would take to burn through its cash reserves at its current cash burn rate. When Beijing Health (Holdings) last reported its June 2024 balance sheet in August 2024, it had zero debt and cash worth HK$243m. Looking at the last year, the company burnt through HK$45m. Therefore, from June 2024 it had 5.4 years of cash runway. Even though this is but one measure of the company's cash burn, the thought of such a long cash runway warms our bellies in a comforting way. Depicted below, you can see how its cash holdings have changed over time.

SEHK:2389 Debt to Equity History September 5th 2024

How Well Is Beijing Health (Holdings) Growing?

In the last twelve months, Beijing Health (Holdings) kept its cash burn steady. But we regret to inform that the revenue slid 11%, and that's not what we want to see. Considering both these factors, we're not particularly excited by its growth profile. In reality, this article only makes a short study of the company's growth data. This graph of historic earnings and revenue shows how Beijing Health (Holdings) is building its business over time.

How Easily Can Beijing Health (Holdings) Raise Cash?

Beijing Health (Holdings) seems to be in a fairly good position, in terms of cash burn, but we still think it's worthwhile considering how easily it could raise more money if it wanted to. Companies can raise capital through either debt or equity. Many companies end up issuing new shares to fund future growth. By comparing a company's annual cash burn to its total market capitalisation, we can estimate roughly how many shares it would have to issue in order to run the company for another year (at the same burn rate).

Since it has a market capitalisation of HK$430m, Beijing Health (Holdings)'s HK$45m in cash burn equates to about 10% of its market value. Given that situation, it's fair to say the company wouldn't have much trouble raising more cash for growth, but shareholders would be somewhat diluted.

How Risky Is Beijing Health (Holdings)'s Cash Burn Situation?

On this analysis of Beijing Health (Holdings)'s cash burn, we think its cash runway was reassuring, while its falling revenue has us a bit worried. Based on the factors mentioned in this article, we think its cash burn situation warrants some attention from shareholders, but we don't think they should be worried. Taking an in-depth view of risks, we've identified 1 warning sign for Beijing Health (Holdings) that you should be aware of before investing.

If you would prefer to check out another company with better fundamentals, then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt or this list of stocks which are all forecast to grow.

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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.