Altair Engineering (NASDAQ:ALTR) Could Easily Take On More Debt
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 Altair Engineering Inc. (NASDAQ:ALTR) does use debt in its business. But the more important question is: how much risk is that debt creating?
When Is Debt A Problem?
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. Ultimately, if the company can't fulfill its legal obligations to repay debt, shareholders could walk away with nothing. 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. 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 Altair Engineering
How Much Debt Does Altair Engineering Carry?
You can click the graphic below for the historical numbers, but it shows that as of June 2021 Altair Engineering had US$193.9m of debt, an increase on US$182.8m, over one year. But on the other hand it also has US$260.1m in cash, leading to a US$66.2m net cash position.
A Look At Altair Engineering's Liabilities
Zooming in on the latest balance sheet data, we can see that Altair Engineering had liabilities of US$356.2m due within 12 months and liabilities of US$64.7m due beyond that. Offsetting these obligations, it had cash of US$260.1m as well as receivables valued at US$102.3m due within 12 months. So it has liabilities totalling US$58.5m more than its cash and near-term receivables, combined.
This state of affairs indicates that Altair Engineering's balance sheet looks quite solid, as its total liabilities are just about equal to its liquid assets. So while it's hard to imagine that the US$5.68b company is struggling for cash, we still think it's worth monitoring its balance sheet. Despite its noteworthy liabilities, Altair Engineering boasts net cash, so it's fair to say it does not have a heavy debt load!
Pleasingly, Altair Engineering is growing its EBIT faster than former Australian PM Bob Hawke downs a yard glass, boasting a 1,109% gain in the last twelve months. There's no doubt that we learn most about debt from the balance sheet. But ultimately the future profitability of the business will decide if Altair Engineering 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.
But our final consideration is also important, because a company cannot pay debt with paper profits; it needs cold hard cash. While Altair Engineering 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, Altair Engineering 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
We could understand if investors are concerned about Altair Engineering's liabilities, but we can be reassured by the fact it has has net cash of US$66.2m. And it impressed us with free cash flow of US$43m, being 311% of its EBIT. So is Altair Engineering's debt a risk? It doesn't seem so to us. 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. We've identified 1 warning sign with Altair Engineering , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.
When all is said and done, sometimes its easier to focus on companies that don't even need debt. Readers can access a list of growth stocks with zero net debt 100% free, right now.
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.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
