Does Reynolds Consumer Products (NASDAQ:REYN) Have A Healthy Balance Sheet?

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 Reynolds Consumer Products Inc. (NASDAQ:REYN) does use debt in its business. But should shareholders be worried about its use of debt?

What Risk Does Debt Bring?

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. 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, the upside of debt is that it often represents cheap capital, especially when it replaces dilution in a company with the ability to reinvest at high rates of return. The first thing to do when considering how much debt a business uses is to look at its cash and debt together.

See our latest analysis for Reynolds Consumer Products

How Much Debt Does Reynolds Consumer Products Carry?

As you can see below, Reynolds Consumer Products had US$1.83b of debt at March 2024, down from US$2.09b a year prior. However, it does have US$161.0m in cash offsetting this, leading to net debt of about US$1.67b.

How Healthy Is Reynolds Consumer Products' Balance Sheet?

According to the last reported balance sheet, Reynolds Consumer Products had liabilities of US$517.0m due within 12 months, and liabilities of US$2.35b due beyond 12 months. Offsetting these obligations, it had cash of US$161.0m as well as receivables valued at US$345.0m due within 12 months. So it has liabilities totalling US$2.36b more than its cash and near-term receivables, combined.

This deficit isn't so bad because Reynolds Consumer Products is worth US$5.68b, and thus could probably raise enough capital to shore up 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.

We measure a company's debt load relative to its earnings power by looking at its net debt divided by its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) and by calculating how easily its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) cover its interest expense (interest cover). This way, we consider both the absolute quantum of the debt, as well as the interest rates paid on it.

Reynolds Consumer Products's net debt is sitting at a very reasonable 2.5 times its EBITDA, while its EBIT covered its interest expense just 4.9 times last year. While that doesn't worry us too much, it does suggest the interest payments are somewhat of a burden. Importantly, Reynolds Consumer Products grew its EBIT by 42% over the last twelve months, and that growth will make it easier to handle its debt. The balance sheet is clearly the area to focus on when you are analysing debt. But it is future earnings, more than anything, that will determine Reynolds Consumer Products'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, a business needs free cash flow to pay off debt; accounting profits just don't cut it. So it's worth checking how much of that EBIT is backed by free cash flow. During the last three years, Reynolds Consumer Products produced sturdy free cash flow equating to 64% of its EBIT, about what we'd expect. This free cash flow puts the company in a good position to pay down debt, when appropriate.

Our View

Happily, Reynolds Consumer Products's impressive EBIT growth rate implies it has the upper hand on its debt. But truth be told we feel its net debt to EBITDA does undermine this impression a bit. Looking at all the aforementioned factors together, it strikes us that Reynolds Consumer Products can handle its debt fairly comfortably. On the plus side, this leverage can boost shareholder returns, but the potential downside is more risk of loss, so it's worth monitoring the balance sheet. 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 example - Reynolds Consumer Products has 2 warning signs we think 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.

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