Some say volatility, rather than debt, is the best way to think about risk as an investor, but Warren Buffett famously said that 'Volatility is far from synonymous with risk.' 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. We note that Wangli Security & Surveillance Product Co., Ltd (SHSE:605268) does have debt on its balance sheet. But the real question is whether this debt is making the company risky.

Why Does Debt Bring Risk?

Debt and other liabilities become risky for a business when it cannot easily fulfill those obligations, either with free cash flow or by raising capital at an attractive price. In the worst case scenario, a company can go bankrupt if it cannot pay its creditors. 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. Having said that, the most common situation is where a company manages its debt reasonably well - and to its own advantage. When we examine debt levels, we first consider both cash and debt levels, together.

How Much Debt Does Wangli Security & Surveillance Product Carry?

The image below, which you can click on for greater detail, shows that Wangli Security & Surveillance Product had debt of CN¥391.6m at the end of September 2023, a reduction from CN¥460.7m over a year. However, it also had CN¥252.5m in cash, and so its net debt is CN¥139.0m.

How Healthy Is Wangli Security & Surveillance Product's Balance Sheet?

We can see from the most recent balance sheet that Wangli Security & Surveillance Product had liabilities of CN¥2.24b falling due within a year, and liabilities of CN¥43.9m due beyond that. Offsetting these obligations, it had cash of CN¥252.5m as well as receivables valued at CN¥1.22b due within 12 months. So its liabilities outweigh the sum of its cash and (near-term) receivables by CN¥815.3m.

While this might seem like a lot, it is not so bad since Wangli Security & Surveillance Product has a market capitalization of CN¥3.64b, and so it could probably strengthen its balance sheet by raising capital if it needed to. But it's clear that we should definitely closely examine whether it can manage its debt without dilution.

We use two main ratios to inform us about debt levels relative to earnings. The first is net debt divided by earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA), while the second is how many times its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) covers its interest expense (or its interest cover, for short). The advantage of this approach is that we take into account both the absolute quantum of debt (with net debt to EBITDA) and the actual interest expenses associated with that debt (with its interest cover ratio).

Wangli Security & Surveillance Product has a low net debt to EBITDA ratio of only 0.81. And its EBIT covers its interest expense a whopping 13.1 times over. So you could argue it is no more threatened by its debt than an elephant is by a mouse. Although Wangli Security & Surveillance Product made a loss at the EBIT level, last year, it was also good to see that it generated CN¥74m in EBIT over the last twelve months. 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 Wangli Security & Surveillance Product's ability to maintain a healthy balance sheet going forward. So if you're focused on the future you can check out this free report showing analyst profit forecasts.

But our final consideration is also important, because a company cannot pay debt with paper profits; it needs cold hard cash. So it's worth checking how much of the earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) is backed by free cash flow. Happily for any shareholders, Wangli Security & Surveillance Product actually produced more free cash flow than EBIT over the last year. There's nothing better than incoming cash when it comes to staying in your lenders' good graces.

Our View

Wangli Security & Surveillance Product's interest cover suggests it can handle its debt as easily as Cristiano Ronaldo could score a goal against an under 14's goalkeeper. And that's just the beginning of the good news since its conversion of EBIT to free cash flow is also very heartening. When we consider the range of factors above, it looks like Wangli Security & Surveillance Product is pretty sensible with its use of debt. While that brings some risk, it can also enhance returns for shareholders. 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. For example - Wangli Security & Surveillance Product has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

Of course, if you're the type of investor who prefers buying stocks without the burden of debt, then don't hesitate to discover our exclusive list of net cash growth stocks, today.

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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.