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Is Eros International Media (NSE:EROSMEDIA) Using Debt In A Risky Way?
Legendary fund manager Li Lu (who Charlie Munger backed) once said, 'The biggest investment risk is not the volatility of prices, but whether you will suffer a permanent loss of capital.' It's only natural to consider a company's balance sheet when you examine how risky it is, since debt is often involved when a business collapses. Importantly, Eros International Media Limited (NSE:EROSMEDIA) does carry debt. But the real question is whether this debt is making the company risky.
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. While that is not too common, we often do see indebted companies permanently diluting shareholders because lenders force them to raise capital at a distressed price. Of course, plenty of companies use debt to fund growth, without any negative consequences. The first thing to do when considering how much debt a business uses is to look at its cash and debt together.
View our latest analysis for Eros International Media
What Is Eros International Media's Debt?
The image below, which you can click on for greater detail, shows that Eros International Media had debt of ₹4.61b at the end of September 2022, a reduction from ₹4.83b over a year. And it doesn't have much cash, so its net debt is about the same.
How Healthy Is Eros International Media's Balance Sheet?
Zooming in on the latest balance sheet data, we can see that Eros International Media had liabilities of ₹9.46b due within 12 months and liabilities of ₹3.05b due beyond that. Offsetting these obligations, it had cash of ₹38.4m as well as receivables valued at ₹3.87b due within 12 months. So it has liabilities totalling ₹8.60b more than its cash and near-term receivables, combined.
The deficiency here weighs heavily on the ₹2.84b company itself, as if a child were struggling under the weight of an enormous back-pack full of books, his sports gear, and a trumpet. So we'd watch its balance sheet closely, without a doubt. At the end of the day, Eros International Media would probably need a major re-capitalization if its creditors were to demand repayment. The balance sheet is clearly the area to focus on when you are analysing debt. But it is Eros International Media's earnings that will influence how the balance sheet holds up in the future. So if you're keen to discover more about its earnings, it might be worth checking out this graph of its long term earnings trend.
Over 12 months, Eros International Media reported revenue of ₹5.5b, which is a gain of 111%, although it did not report any earnings before interest and tax. So its pretty obvious shareholders are hoping for more growth!
Caveat Emptor
Even though Eros International Media managed to grow its top line quite deftly, the cold hard truth is that it is losing money on the EBIT line. Indeed, it lost ₹240m at the EBIT level. Combining this information with the significant liabilities we already touched on makes us very hesitant about this stock, to say the least. Of course, it may be able to improve its situation with a bit of luck and good execution. Nevertheless, we would not bet on it given that it lost ₹143m in just last twelve months, and it doesn't have much by way of liquid assets. So while it's not wise to assume the company will fail, we do think it's risky. 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. Case in point: We've spotted 2 warning signs for Eros International Media you should be aware of, and 1 of them is significant.
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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About NSEI:EROSMEDIA
Eros International Media
Engages in the production, exploitation, and distribution of films in India, the United Arab Emirates, and internationally.
Slightly overvalued with imperfect balance sheet.