Yahoo Finance JD.com (NASDAQ:JD) Has A Rock Solid Balance Sheet
David Iben put it well when he said, 'Volatility is not a risk we care about. What we care about is avoiding the permanent loss of capital.' 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 JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD) does have debt on its balance sheet. But the more important question is: how much risk is that debt creating?
What Risk Does Debt Bring?
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. However, a more frequent (but still costly) occurrence is where a company must issue shares at bargain-basement prices, permanently diluting shareholders, just to shore up its balance sheet. 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 JD.com
What Is JD.com's Debt?
The image below, which you can click on for greater detail, shows that at March 2024 JD.com had debt of CN¥47.9b, up from CN¥43.6b in one year. However, it does have CN¥172.0b in cash offsetting this, leading to net cash of CN¥124.1b.
A Look At JD.com's Liabilities
Zooming in on the latest balance sheet data, we can see that JD.com had liabilities of CN¥246.1b due within 12 months and liabilities of CN¥67.8b due beyond that. On the other hand, it had cash of CN¥172.0b and CN¥21.6b worth of receivables due within a year. So it has liabilities totalling CN¥120.3b more than its cash and near-term receivables, combined.
This deficit isn't so bad because JD.com is worth a massive CN¥327.7b, and thus could probably raise enough capital to shore up its balance sheet, if the need arose. But it's clear that we should definitely closely examine whether it can manage its debt without dilution. Despite its noteworthy liabilities, JD.com boasts net cash, so it's fair to say it does not have a heavy debt load!
On top of that, JD.com grew its EBIT by 40% 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 ultimately the future profitability of the business will decide if JD.com can strengthen its balance sheet over time. 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. While JD.com has net cash on its balance sheet, it's still worth taking a look at its ability to convert earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) to free cash flow, to help us understand how quickly it is building (or eroding) that cash balance. Over the last three years, JD.com actually produced more free cash flow than EBIT. That sort of strong cash conversion gets us as excited as the crowd when the beat drops at a Daft Punk concert.
Summing Up
Although JD.com's balance sheet isn't particularly strong, due to the total liabilities, it is clearly positive to see that it has net cash of CN¥124.1b. And it impressed us with free cash flow of CN¥46b, being 143% of its EBIT. So we don't think JD.com's use of debt is 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. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for JD.com that 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.
