JD.com (NASDAQ:JD) Could Easily Take On More Debt

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.' So it seems the smart money knows that debt - which is usually involved in bankruptcies - is a very important factor, when you assess how risky a company is. We can see that JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD) does use debt in its business. But should shareholders be worried about its use of debt?

Why Does Debt Bring Risk?

Debt assists a business until the business has trouble paying it off, either with new capital or with free 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 usual (but still expensive) situation is where a company must dilute shareholders at a cheap share price simply to get debt under control. By replacing dilution, though, debt can be an extremely good tool for businesses that need capital to invest in growth at high rates of return. The first step when considering a company's debt levels is to consider its cash and debt together.

See our latest analysis for JD.com

What Is JD.com's Net Debt?

You can click the graphic below for the historical numbers, but it shows that as of December 2023 JD.com had CN¥47.0b of debt, an increase on CN¥42.4b, over one year. But it also has CN¥190.1b in cash to offset that, meaning it has CN¥143.1b net cash.

How Strong Is JD.com's Balance Sheet?

Zooming in on the latest balance sheet data, we can see that JD.com had liabilities of CN¥265.7b due within 12 months and liabilities of CN¥66.9b due beyond that. On the other hand, it had cash of CN¥190.1b and CN¥22.4b worth of receivables due within a year. So its liabilities outweigh the sum of its cash and (near-term) receivables by CN¥120.0b.

While this might seem like a lot, it is not so bad since JD.com has a huge market capitalization of CN¥302.8b, and so it could probably strengthen its balance sheet by raising capital if it needed to. But it's clear that we should definitely closely examine whether it can manage its debt without dilution. While it does have liabilities worth noting, JD.com also has more cash than debt, so we're pretty confident it can manage its debt safely.

On top of that, JD.com grew its EBIT by 58% over the last twelve months, and that growth will make it easier to handle its debt. There's no doubt that we learn most about debt from the balance sheet. But it is future earnings, more than anything, that will determine JD.com's ability to maintain a healthy balance sheet going forward. 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. JD.com may have net cash on the balance sheet, but it is still interesting to look at how well the business converts its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) to free cash flow, because that will influence both its need for, and its capacity to manage debt. Happily for any shareholders, JD.com actually produced more free cash flow than EBIT over the last three years. That sort of strong cash conversion gets us as excited as the crowd when the beat drops at a Daft Punk concert.

Summing Up

While JD.com does have more liabilities than liquid assets, it also has net cash of CN¥143.1b. And it impressed us with free cash flow of CN¥41b, being 182% of its EBIT. So is JD.com's debt a risk? It doesn't seem so to us. There's no doubt that we learn most about debt from the balance sheet. But ultimately, every company can contain risks that exist outside of the balance sheet. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for JD.com 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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.