Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad (KLSE:JTIASA) Seems To Use Debt Quite Sensibly

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.' 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. As with many other companies Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad (KLSE:JTIASA) makes use of debt. But the real question is whether this debt is making the company risky.

Why Does Debt Bring Risk?

Generally speaking, debt only becomes a real problem when a company can't easily pay it off, either by raising capital or with its own cash flow. Part and parcel of capitalism is the process of 'creative destruction' where failed businesses are mercilessly liquidated by their bankers. 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. When we examine debt levels, we first consider both cash and debt levels, together.

View our latest analysis for Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad

What Is Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad's Net Debt?

As you can see below, Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad had RM647.6m of debt at December 2021, down from RM706.0m a year prior. However, because it has a cash reserve of RM180.6m, its net debt is less, at about RM467.0m.

How Strong Is Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad's Balance Sheet?

Zooming in on the latest balance sheet data, we can see that Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad had liabilities of RM211.9m due within 12 months and liabilities of RM633.3m due beyond that. Offsetting these obligations, it had cash of RM180.6m as well as receivables valued at RM44.4m due within 12 months. So its liabilities outweigh the sum of its cash and (near-term) receivables by RM620.3m.

While this might seem like a lot, it is not so bad since Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad has a market capitalization of RM1.07b, and so it could probably strengthen its balance sheet by raising capital if it needed to. But we definitely want to keep our eyes open to indications that its debt is bringing too much risk.

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). This way, we consider both the absolute quantum of the debt, as well as the interest rates paid on it.

Looking at its net debt to EBITDA of 1.4 and interest cover of 6.2 times, it seems to us that Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad is probably using debt in a pretty reasonable way. So we'd recommend keeping a close eye on the impact financing costs are having on the business. Better yet, Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad grew its EBIT by 243% last year, which is an impressive improvement. If maintained that growth will make the debt even more manageable in the years ahead. There's no doubt that we learn most about debt from the balance sheet. But ultimately the future profitability of the business will decide if Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad can strengthen its balance sheet over time. So if you want to see what the professionals think, you might find this free report on analyst profit forecasts to be interesting.

Finally, a company can only pay off debt with cold hard cash, not accounting profits. So we always check how much of that EBIT is translated into free cash flow. Over the last two years, Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad actually produced more free cash flow than EBIT. That sort of strong cash conversion gets us as excited as the crowd when the beat drops at a Daft Punk concert.

Our View

Happily, Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad's impressive conversion of EBIT to free cash flow implies it has the upper hand on its debt. But truth be told we feel its level of total liabilities does undermine this impression a bit. Taking all this data into account, it seems to us that Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad takes a pretty sensible approach to debt. While that brings some risk, it can also enhance returns for shareholders. There's no doubt that we learn most about debt from the balance sheet. However, not all investment risk resides within the balance sheet - far from it. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad 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.