Here's Why MasTec (NYSE:MTZ) Can Manage Its Debt Responsibly
Here's Why MasTec (NYSE:MTZ) Can Manage Its Debt Responsibly
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 note that MasTec, Inc. (NYSE:MTZ) does have debt on its balance sheet. But the real question is whether this debt is making the company risky.
霍華德·馬克斯說得好:“與其擔心股價波動,我擔心的是永久性損失的可能性……每個實際的投資者都擔心這個。”當我們考慮公司的風險時,我們總是喜歡看它對債務的運用,因爲負債過多可能會導致破產。我們注意到MasTec股份有限公司(紐約證券交易所:MTZ)的資產負債表上確實有債務。但真正的問題是,這些債務是否讓公司面臨風險。
When Is Debt A Problem?
什麼時候負債才是一個問題?
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. 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. 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.
債務是幫助企業成長的工具,但如果企業無力償還債權人,那麼它將全部由債權人支配。資本主義的一部分內容是“創造性破壞”過程,在這個過程中,破產的企業是被銀行家們毫不留情地清算掉的。雖然這種情況不太常見,但我們經常看到揹負債務的公司因債權人強制使其以低價募集資本而導致股東的權益被永久性稀釋。當然,債務的好處是經常代表廉價資本,尤其是在它替代公司具有高回報能力的再投資的稀釋時。在考慮一家企業使用多少債務時,首先要做的是查看其現金和債務。
What Is MasTec's Debt?
MasTec的債務是多少?
As you can see below, MasTec had US$2.40b of debt at March 2024, down from US$2.85b a year prior. However, it also had US$249.3m in cash, and so its net debt is US$2.16b.
如下所示,MasTec在2024年3月份有24億美元的債務,較一年前的28.5億美元減少。但是,它也有2.493億美元的現金,因此其淨債務爲21.6億美元。
![debt-equity-history-analysis](https://usnewsfile.moomoo.com/public/MM-PersistNewsContentImage/7781/20240626/0-edc2c5d5529f3e1e7541ec48bb783648-0-7ed08cc5ace9107ba4951dfbff747329.png/big)
How Healthy Is MasTec's Balance Sheet?
MasTec的資產負債表健康狀況如何?
The latest balance sheet data shows that MasTec had liabilities of US$2.63b due within a year, and liabilities of US$3.42b falling due after that. Offsetting this, it had US$249.3m in cash and US$2.90b in receivables that were due within 12 months. So its liabilities outweigh the sum of its cash and (near-term) receivables by US$2.91b.
最新的資產負債表數據顯示,MasTec有26.3億美元的負債在一年內到期,3.42億美元的負債在此之後到期。抵消這一點的是,它有2.493億美元的現金和2.9億美元的應收賬款,這些應收賬款在12個月內到期。因此,它的負債比其現金和(短期)應收賬款的總和少29.1億美元。
MasTec has a market capitalization of US$8.43b, 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.
MasTec的市值爲84.3億美元,因此,如果需要,它很可能籌集資金以改善其資產負債表。但我們肯定要密切關注其債務是否帶來過多的風險。
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). 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).
我們通過查看淨債務與利息、稅、折舊和攤銷前收益(EBITDA)之比以及計算其利息支出由收益前利息和稅(EBIT)覆蓋的程度來度量一家公司的債務負載相對於其收益能力的程度。此方法的優點在於我們同時考慮了債務的絕對量(以淨債務爲EBITDA)以及與該債務相關的實際利息支出(以其利息覆蓋倍數計算)。
While we wouldn't worry about MasTec's net debt to EBITDA ratio of 2.6, we think its super-low interest cover of 0.96 times is a sign of high leverage. It seems that the business incurs large depreciation and amortisation charges, so maybe its debt load is heavier than it would first appear, since EBITDA is arguably a generous measure of earnings. It seems clear that the cost of borrowing money is negatively impacting returns for shareholders, of late. The good news is that MasTec grew its EBIT a smooth 42% over the last twelve months. Like the milk of human kindness that sort of growth increases resilience, making the company more capable of managing 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 MasTec'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.
儘管我們不必擔心MasTec的淨債務與息稅前利潤比率爲2.6,但其超低的息稅前利潤倍數爲0.96倍是高槓杆的標誌。顯然,該業務產生了大量的折舊和攤銷費用,因此其負債負擔可能比首次出現的要重,因爲EBITDA可以說是收益的一種慷慨衡量標準。顯然,借錢的成本對股東的回報產生了負面影響。好消息是,MasTec在過去12個月中平穩增長了42%的EBIt。像人性之善的牛奶一樣,這種增長增加了彈性,使公司能夠更好地管理債務。顯然,在分析債務時,資產負債表是重點。但在未來,更重要的是未來收益,這將確定MasTec保持健康的資產負債表的能力。如果你關注未來,你可以查閱此免費報告,顯示分析師的利潤預測。
Finally, a business needs free cash flow to pay off debt; accounting profits just don't cut it. So we always check how much of that EBIT is translated into free cash flow. Happily for any shareholders, MasTec actually produced more free cash flow than EBIT over the last three years. That sort of strong cash generation warms our hearts like a puppy in a bumblebee suit.
最後,企業需要有自由現金流來償還債務;會計利潤並不能解決問題。因此,我們總是覈查這些EBIT中有多少被轉化爲自由現金流。對於任何股東來說,讓人高興的是,過去三年,MasTec實際上產生的自由現金流比EBIT還多。這種強勁的現金流產生方式,如蜜蜂斗篷下的小狗,讓我們十分振奮。
Our View
我們的觀點
Happily, MasTec's impressive conversion of EBIT to free cash flow implies it has the upper hand on its debt. But we must concede we find its interest cover has the opposite effect. Looking at all the aforementioned factors together, it strikes us that MasTec 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. When analysing debt levels, the balance sheet is the obvious place to start. However, not all investment risk resides within the balance sheet - far from it. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for MasTec (1 makes us a bit uncomfortable) you should be aware of.
令人欣慰的是,MasTec將EBIt轉化爲自由現金流的能力令人印象深刻,這意味着它在債務上具有優勢。但我們必須承認,我們發現它的息稅前利潤覆蓋率具有相反的效果。綜合考慮所有上述因素,我們認爲MasTec可以相當舒適地處理其債務。好的一面是,這種槓桿作用可以提高股東回報,但潛在的下降風險更大,因此值得監視資產負債表。在分析債務水平時,資產負債表是明顯的起點。然而,並不是所有的投資風險都在資產負債表中,甚至可以說風險通常不在資產負債表上。例如,我們已經確定MasTec有2個警告信號(其中1個使我們有點不舒服),您應該了解。
At the end of the day, it's often better to focus on companies that are free from net debt. You can access our special list of such companies (all with a track record of profit growth). It's free.
歸根結底,專注於沒有淨債務的公司往往更好。您可以訪問我們的特別列表,其中包括所有表現出盈利增長軌跡的公司。這是免費的。
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這篇文章是Simply Wall St的一般性文章。我們根據歷史數據和分析師預測提供評論,只使用公正的方法論,我們的文章並不意味着提供任何金融建議。文章不構成買賣任何股票的建議,也不考慮您的目標或您的財務狀況。我們的目標是帶給您基本數據驅動的長期關注分析。請注意,我們的分析可能不考慮最新的價格敏感公司公告或定性材料。Simply Wall St沒有任何股票頭寸。
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