China Railway Signal & Communication (HKG:3969) Has A Pretty Healthy Balance Sheet

The external fund manager backed by Berkshire Hathaway's Charlie Munger, Li Lu, makes no bones about it when he says 'The biggest investment risk is not the volatility of prices, but whether you will suffer a 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. Importantly, China Railway Signal & Communication Corporation Limited (HKG:3969) does carry debt. But should shareholders be worried about its use of debt?

Why Does Debt Bring Risk?

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. Having said that, the most common situation is where a company manages its debt reasonably well - and to its own advantage. When we examine debt levels, we first consider both cash and debt levels, together.

See our latest analysis for China Railway Signal & Communication

What Is China Railway Signal & Communication's Debt?

As you can see below, China Railway Signal & Communication had CN¥2.64b of debt at September 2021, down from CN¥2.91b a year prior. But it also has CN¥17.1b in cash to offset that, meaning it has CN¥14.5b net cash.

How Strong Is China Railway Signal & Communication's Balance Sheet?

Zooming in on the latest balance sheet data, we can see that China Railway Signal & Communication had liabilities of CN¥60.3b due within 12 months and liabilities of CN¥3.39b due beyond that. On the other hand, it had cash of CN¥17.1b and CN¥62.0b worth of receivables due within a year. So it actually has CN¥15.4b more liquid assets than total liabilities.

This luscious liquidity implies that China Railway Signal & Communication's balance sheet is sturdy like a giant sequoia tree. With this in mind one could posit that its balance sheet means the company is able to handle some adversity. Succinctly put, China Railway Signal & Communication boasts net cash, so it's fair to say it does not have a heavy debt load!

On the other hand, China Railway Signal & Communication saw its EBIT drop by 3.0% in the last twelve months. That sort of decline, if sustained, will obviously make debt harder to handle. 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 Railway Signal & Communication'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, while the tax-man may adore accounting profits, lenders only accept cold hard cash. China Railway Signal & Communication may have net cash on the balance sheet, but it is still interesting to look at how well the business converts its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) to free cash flow, because that will influence both its need for, and its capacity to manage debt. In the last three years, China Railway Signal & Communication's free cash flow amounted to 28% of its EBIT, less than we'd expect. That's not great, when it comes to paying down debt.

Summing up

While it is always sensible to investigate a company's debt, in this case China Railway Signal & Communication has CN¥14.5b in net cash and a decent-looking balance sheet. So we are not troubled with China Railway Signal & Communication's debt use. 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. We've identified 1 warning sign with China Railway Signal & Communication , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

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. 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.