Warren Buffett famously said, 'Volatility is far from synonymous with risk.' 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. As with many other companies Fiverr International Ltd. (NYSE:FVRR) makes use of debt. But should shareholders be worried about its use of debt?

Why Does Debt Bring Risk?

Debt and other liabilities become risky for a business when it cannot easily fulfill those obligations, either with free cash flow or by raising capital at an attractive price. If things get really bad, the lenders can take control of the business. 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, plenty of companies use debt to fund growth, without any negative consequences. When we examine debt levels, we first consider both cash and debt levels, together.

What Is Fiverr International's Net Debt?

As you can see below, Fiverr International had US$455.3m of debt, at December 2023, which is about the same as the year before. You can click the chart for greater detail. However, because it has a cash reserve of US$417.4m, its net debt is less, at about US$37.9m.

How Strong Is Fiverr International's Balance Sheet?

The latest balance sheet data shows that Fiverr International had liabilities of US$205.4m due within a year, and liabilities of US$462.4m falling due after that. On the other hand, it had cash of US$417.4m and US$23.2m worth of receivables due within a year. So it has liabilities totalling US$227.2m more than its cash and near-term receivables, combined.

This deficit isn't so bad because Fiverr International is worth US$805.0m, and thus could probably raise enough capital to shore up 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. 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 Fiverr International 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.

In the last year Fiverr International wasn't profitable at an EBIT level, but managed to grow its revenue by 7.1%, to US$361m. We usually like to see faster growth from unprofitable companies, but each to their own.

Caveat Emptor

Importantly, Fiverr International had an earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) loss over the last year. To be specific the EBIT loss came in at US$15m. Considering that alongside the liabilities mentioned above does not give us much confidence that company should be using so much debt. Quite frankly we think the balance sheet is far from match-fit, although it could be improved with time. Surprisingly, we note that it actually reported positive free cash flow of US$82m and a profit of US$3.7m. So if we focus on those metrics there seems to be a chance the company will manage its debt without much trouble. 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. These risks can be hard to spot. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Fiverr International you should know about.

If, after all that, you're more interested in a fast growing company with a rock-solid balance sheet, then check out our list of net cash growth stocks without delay.

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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.