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.' So it might be obvious that you need to consider debt, when you think about how risky any given stock is, because too much debt can sink a company. Importantly, Studio City International Holdings Limited (NYSE:MSC) does carry debt. But the more important question is: how much risk is that debt creating?

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. If things get really bad, the lenders can take control of the business. 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. Of course, debt can be an important tool in businesses, particularly capital heavy businesses. When we think about a company's use of debt, we first look at cash and debt together.

View our latest analysis for Studio City International Holdings

What Is Studio City International Holdings's Net Debt?

The chart below, which you can click on for greater detail, shows that Studio City International Holdings had US$2.43b in debt in September 2023; about the same as the year before. However, because it has a cash reserve of US$293.0m, its net debt is less, at about US$2.14b.

How Healthy Is Studio City International Holdings' Balance Sheet?

Zooming in on the latest balance sheet data, we can see that Studio City International Holdings had liabilities of US$131.9m due within 12 months and liabilities of US$2.45b due beyond that. On the other hand, it had cash of US$293.0m and US$41.6m worth of receivables due within a year. So its liabilities outweigh the sum of its cash and (near-term) receivables by US$2.25b.

The deficiency here weighs heavily on the US$1.01b company itself, as if a child were struggling under the weight of an enormous back-pack full of books, his sports gear, and a trumpet. So we definitely think shareholders need to watch this one closely. After all, Studio City International Holdings would likely require a major re-capitalisation if it had to pay its creditors today. The balance sheet is clearly the area to focus on when you are analysing debt. But you can't view debt in total isolation; since Studio City International Holdings will need earnings to service that debt. So when considering debt, it's definitely worth looking at the earnings trend. Click here for an interactive snapshot.

Over 12 months, Studio City International Holdings reported revenue of US$309m, which is a gain of 764%, although it did not report any earnings before interest and tax. That's virtually the hole-in-one of revenue growth!

Caveat Emptor

Even though Studio City International Holdings managed to grow its top line quite deftly, the cold hard truth is that it is losing money on the EBIT line. Its EBIT loss was a whopping US$112m. When we look at that alongside the significant liabilities, we're not particularly confident about the company. We'd want to see some strong near-term improvements before getting too interested in the stock. It's fair to say the loss of US$200m didn't encourage us either; we'd like to see a profit. In the meantime, we consider the stock to be risky. There's no doubt that we learn most about debt from the balance sheet. However, not all investment risk resides within the balance sheet - far from it. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Studio City International Holdings (1 is significant!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

If you're interested in investing in businesses that can grow profits without the burden of debt, then check out this free list of growing businesses that have net cash on the balance sheet.

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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.