Aker (OB:AKER) Is Carrying A Fair Bit Of Debt

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.' So it seems the smart money knows that debt - which is usually involved in bankruptcies - is a very important factor, when you assess how risky a company is. As with many other companies Aker ASA (OB:AKER) makes use of debt. But the real question is whether this debt is making the company risky.

When Is Debt Dangerous?

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. 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. Having said that, the most common situation is where a company manages its debt reasonably well - and to its own advantage. When we think about a company's use of debt, we first look at cash and debt together.

View our latest analysis for Aker

What Is Aker's Debt?

As you can see below, Aker had kr31.0b of debt, at December 2021, which is about the same as the year before. You can click the chart for greater detail. However, it does have kr14.8b in cash offsetting this, leading to net debt of about kr16.2b.

A Look At Aker's Liabilities

We can see from the most recent balance sheet that Aker had liabilities of kr10.4b falling due within a year, and liabilities of kr31.5b due beyond that. On the other hand, it had cash of kr14.8b and kr5.15b worth of receivables due within a year. So its liabilities outweigh the sum of its cash and (near-term) receivables by kr22.0b.

Aker has a market capitalization of kr55.9b, so it could very likely raise cash to ameliorate its balance sheet, if the need arose. But we definitely want to keep our eyes open to indications that its debt is bringing too much risk. When analysing debt levels, the balance sheet is the obvious place to start. But you can't view debt in total isolation; since Aker will need earnings to service that debt. 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.

In the last year Aker wasn't profitable at an EBIT level, but managed to grow its revenue by 109%, to kr9.2b. So there's no doubt that shareholders are cheering for growth

Caveat Emptor

While we can certainly appreciate Aker's revenue growth, its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) loss is not ideal. To be specific the EBIT loss came in at kr781m. Considering that alongside the liabilities mentioned above does not give us much confidence that company should be using so much debt. Quite frankly we think the balance sheet is far from match-fit, although it could be improved with time. Another cause for caution is that is bled kr4.1b in negative free cash flow over the last twelve months. So suffice it to say we consider the stock very risky. The balance sheet is clearly the area to focus on when you are analysing debt. But ultimately, every company can contain risks that exist outside of the balance sheet. Case in point: We've spotted 2 warning signs for Aker you should be aware of, and 1 of them shouldn't be ignored.

When all is said and done, sometimes its easier to focus on companies that don't even need debt. Readers can access a list of growth stocks with zero net debt 100% free, right now.

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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.