The external fund manager backed by Berkshire Hathaway's Charlie Munger, Li Lu, makes no bones about it when he says 'The biggest investment risk is not the volatility of prices, but whether you will suffer a permanent loss of capital.' 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 can see that C&D International Investment Group Limited (HKG:1908) does use debt in its business. But is this debt a concern to shareholders?

When Is Debt Dangerous?

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. 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. Of course, plenty of companies use debt to fund growth, without any negative consequences. When we examine debt levels, we first consider both cash and debt levels, together.

What Is C&D International Investment Group's Net Debt?

The image below, which you can click on for greater detail, shows that C&D International Investment Group had debt of CN¥84.8b at the end of December 2023, a reduction from CN¥92.0b over a year. However, it does have CN¥55.8b in cash offsetting this, leading to net debt of about CN¥29.0b.

How Healthy Is C&D International Investment Group's Balance Sheet?

The latest balance sheet data shows that C&D International Investment Group had liabilities of CN¥260.9b due within a year, and liabilities of CN¥75.5b falling due after that. Offsetting this, it had CN¥55.8b in cash and CN¥51.8b in receivables that were due within 12 months. So it has liabilities totalling CN¥228.8b more than its cash and near-term receivables, combined.

This deficit casts a shadow over the CN¥26.3b company, like a colossus towering over mere mortals. So we'd watch its balance sheet closely, without a doubt. After all, C&D International Investment Group would likely require a major re-capitalisation if it had to pay its creditors today.

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

C&D International Investment Group has a debt to EBITDA ratio of 3.8, which signals significant debt, but is still pretty reasonable for most types of business. However, its interest coverage of 1k is very high, suggesting that the interest expense on the debt is currently quite low. We saw C&D International Investment Group grow its EBIT by 6.5% in the last twelve months. That's far from incredible but it is a good thing, when it comes to paying off debt. There's no doubt that we learn most about debt from the balance sheet. But it is future earnings, more than anything, that will determine C&D International Investment Group'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.

Finally, a company can only pay off debt with cold hard cash, not accounting profits. So it's worth checking how much of that EBIT is backed by free cash flow. Over the last three years, C&D International Investment Group actually produced more free cash flow than EBIT. That sort of strong cash generation warms our hearts like a puppy in a bumblebee suit.

Our View

We feel some trepidation about C&D International Investment Group's difficulty level of total liabilities, but we've got positives to focus on, too. To wit both its interest cover and conversion of EBIT to free cash flow were encouraging signs. Taking the abovementioned factors together we do think C&D International Investment Group's debt poses some risks to the business. So while that leverage does boost returns on equity, we wouldn't really want to see it increase from here. 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. For example - C&D International Investment Group has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

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.