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.' When we think about how risky a company is, we always like to look at its use of debt, since debt overload can lead to ruin. We can see that STORAGE-OH Co.,Ltd. (TSE:2997) does use debt in its business. But the real question is whether this debt is making the company risky.
What Risk Does Debt Bring?
Debt assists a business until the business has trouble paying it off, either with new capital or with free cash flow. 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, debt can be an important tool in businesses, particularly capital heavy businesses. The first step when considering a company's debt levels is to consider its cash and debt together.
See our latest analysis for STORAGE-OHLtd
What Is STORAGE-OHLtd's Net Debt?
The image below, which you can click on for greater detail, shows that at April 2024 STORAGE-OHLtd had debt of JPĀ„2.80b, up from JPĀ„1.95b in one year. However, it does have JPĀ„706.0m in cash offsetting this, leading to net debt of about JPĀ„2.09b.
A Look At STORAGE-OHLtd's Liabilities
We can see from the most recent balance sheet that STORAGE-OHLtd had liabilities of JPĀ„1.90b falling due within a year, and liabilities of JPĀ„1.19b due beyond that. Offsetting these obligations, it had cash of JPĀ„706.0m as well as receivables valued at JPĀ„11.0m due within 12 months. So its liabilities total JPĀ„2.37b more than the combination of its cash and short-term receivables.
The deficiency here weighs heavily on the JPĀ„1.51b 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 definitely think shareholders need to watch this one closely. At the end of the day, STORAGE-OHLtd would probably need a major re-capitalization if its creditors were to demand repayment.
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). Thus we consider debt relative to earnings both with and without depreciation and amortization expenses.
Strangely STORAGE-OHLtd has a sky high EBITDA ratio of 10.8, implying high debt, but a strong interest coverage of 25.3. This means that unless the company has access to very cheap debt, that interest expense will likely grow in the future. We saw STORAGE-OHLtd grow its EBIT by 4.1% in the last twelve months. That's far from incredible but it is a good thing, when it comes to paying off debt. When analysing debt levels, the balance sheet is the obvious place to start. But it is STORAGE-OHLtd's earnings that will influence how the balance sheet holds up in the future. So when considering debt, it's definitely worth looking at the earnings trend. Click here for an interactive snapshot.
But our final consideration is also important, because a company cannot pay debt with paper profits; it needs cold hard cash. So we always check how much of that EBIT is translated into free cash flow. Over the last three years, STORAGE-OHLtd saw substantial negative free cash flow, in total. While investors are no doubt expecting a reversal of that situation in due course, it clearly does mean its use of debt is more risky.
Our View
To be frank both STORAGE-OHLtd's net debt to EBITDA and its track record of converting EBIT to free cash flow make us rather uncomfortable with its debt levels. But at least it's pretty decent at covering its interest expense with its EBIT; that's encouraging. We're quite clear that we consider STORAGE-OHLtd to be really rather risky, as a result of its balance sheet health. So we're almost as wary of this stock as a hungry kitten is about falling into its owner's fish pond: once bitten, twice shy, as they say. The balance sheet is clearly the area to focus on when you are analysing debt. However, not all investment risk resides within the balance sheet - far from it. We've identified 3 warning signs with STORAGE-OHLtd (at least 2 which are potentially serious) , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.
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.
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About TSE:2997
STORAGE-OHLtd
Engages in the planning, development, operation, and management of self-storage facilities in Japan.
Mediocre balance sheet low.
