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.' 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 Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc. (NYSE:DO) does have debt on its balance sheet. But the real question is whether this debt is making the company risky.

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. 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. The first step when considering a company's debt levels is to consider its cash and debt together.

What Is Diamond Offshore Drilling's Net Debt?

You can click the graphic below for the historical numbers, but it shows that as of March 2024 Diamond Offshore Drilling had US$534.0m of debt, an increase on US$345.8m, over one year. However, it does have US$162.4m in cash offsetting this, leading to net debt of about US$371.6m.

How Strong Is Diamond Offshore Drilling's Balance Sheet?

Zooming in on the latest balance sheet data, we can see that Diamond Offshore Drilling had liabilities of US$275.3m due within 12 months and liabilities of US$755.4m due beyond that. On the other hand, it had cash of US$162.4m and US$222.5m worth of receivables due within a year. So its liabilities total US$645.9m more than the combination of its cash and short-term receivables.

While this might seem like a lot, it is not so bad since Diamond Offshore Drilling has a market capitalization of US$1.52b, and so it could probably strengthen its balance sheet by raising capital if it needed to. However, it is still worthwhile taking a close look at its ability to pay off debt.

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). Thus we consider debt relative to earnings both with and without depreciation and amortization expenses.

Even though Diamond Offshore Drilling's debt is only 1.9, its interest cover is really very low at 1.5. The main reason for this is that it has such high depreciation and amortisation. These charges may be non-cash, so they could be excluded when it comes to paying down debt. But the accounting charges are there for a reason -- some assets are seen to be losing value. In any case, it's safe to say the company has meaningful debt. We also note that Diamond Offshore Drilling improved its EBIT from a last year's loss to a positive US$78m. When analysing debt levels, the balance sheet is the obvious place to start. But ultimately the future profitability of the business will decide if Diamond Offshore Drilling 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 company can only pay off debt with cold hard cash, not accounting profits. So it is important to check how much of its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) converts to actual free cash flow. During the last year, Diamond Offshore Drilling burned a lot of cash. While that may be a result of expenditure for growth, it does make the debt far more risky.

Our View

On the face of it, Diamond Offshore Drilling's interest cover left us tentative about the stock, and its conversion of EBIT to free cash flow was no more enticing than the one empty restaurant on the busiest night of the year. Having said that, its ability handle its debt, based on its EBITDA, isn't such a worry. Looking at the bigger picture, it seems clear to us that Diamond Offshore Drilling's use of debt is creating risks for the company. If everything goes well that may pay off but the downside of this debt is a greater risk of permanent losses. 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 instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Diamond Offshore Drilling 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.