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American Electric Power Company (NASDAQ:AEP) Seems To Be Using A Lot Of Debt

American Electric Power Company (NASDAQ:AEP) Seems To Be Using A Lot Of Debt

美國電力公司(納斯達克股票代碼:AEP)似乎在使用大量債務
Simply Wall St ·  05/22 14:27

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.' 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. We note that American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) does have debt on its balance sheet. But should shareholders be worried about its use of debt?

有人說,波動性,而不是債務,是投資者思考風險的最佳方式,但禾倫·巴菲特曾說過一句名言:“波動性遠非風險的代名詞。”因此,很明顯,當你考慮任何給定股票的風險時,你需要考慮債務,因爲過多的債務會使公司陷入困境。我們注意到,美國電力公司(納斯達克股票代碼:AEP)的資產負債表上確實有債務。但是,股東是否應該擔心其債務的使用?

What Risk Does Debt Bring?

債務會帶來什麼風險?

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. Ultimately, if the company can't fulfill its legal obligations to repay debt, shareholders could walk away with nothing. However, a more common (but still painful) scenario is that it has to raise new equity capital at a low price, thus permanently diluting shareholders. Of course, debt can be an important tool in businesses, particularly capital heavy businesses. When we examine debt levels, we first consider both cash and debt levels, together.

當企業無法通過自由現金流或以誘人的價格籌集資金來輕鬆履行這些義務時,債務和其他負債就會成爲風險。最終,如果公司無法履行償還債務的法律義務,股東可能會一無所獲。但是,更常見(但仍然令人痛苦)的情況是,它必須以低廉的價格籌集新的股本,從而永久稀釋股東。當然,債務可以成爲企業的重要工具,尤其是資本密集型企業。當我們檢查債務水平時,我們首先要同時考慮現金和債務水平。

What Is American Electric Power Company's Net Debt?

美國電力公司的淨負債是多少?

The chart below, which you can click on for greater detail, shows that American Electric Power Company had US$43.6b in debt in March 2024; about the same as the year before. And it doesn't have much cash, so its net debt is about the same.

您可以點擊下圖以獲取更多詳細信息,該圖表顯示,美國電力公司在2024年3月的債務爲436億美元;與前一年大致相同。而且它沒有太多現金,因此其淨負債大致相同。

debt-equity-history-analysis
NasdaqGS:AEP Debt to Equity History May 22nd 2024
NASDAQGS: AEP 債權與股本比率歷史記錄 2024 年 5 月 22 日

A Look At American Electric Power Company's Liabilities

看看美國電力公司的負債

The latest balance sheet data shows that American Electric Power Company had liabilities of US$10.9b due within a year, and liabilities of US$61.0b falling due after that. Offsetting these obligations, it had cash of US$447.7m as well as receivables valued at US$2.50b due within 12 months. So it has liabilities totalling US$68.9b more than its cash and near-term receivables, combined.

最新的資產負債表數據顯示,美國電力公司的負債爲109億美元,之後到期的負債爲610億美元。除這些債務外,它有4.477億美元的現金以及價值25億美元的應收賬款在12個月內到期。因此,它的負債總額比其現金和短期應收賬款的總和多出689億美元。

Given this deficit is actually higher than the company's massive market capitalization of US$48.8b, we think shareholders really should watch American Electric Power Company's debt levels, like a parent watching their child ride a bike for the first time. Hypothetically, extremely heavy dilution would be required if the company were forced to pay down its liabilities by raising capital at the current share price.

鑑於這一赤字實際上高於該公司48.8億美元的巨額市值,我們認爲股東們確實應該關注美國電力公司的債務水平,就像父母第一次看着孩子騎自行車一樣。假設,如果公司被迫通過按當前股價籌集資金來償還負債,則需要進行極其嚴重的稀釋。

In order to size up a company's debt relative to its earnings, we calculate its net debt divided by its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) and its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) divided by its interest expense (its interest cover). This way, we consider both the absolute quantum of the debt, as well as the interest rates paid on it.

爲了擴大公司相對於收益的負債規模,我們計算其淨負債除以利息、稅項、折舊和攤銷前的收益(EBITDA),將其利息和稅前收益(EBIT)除以利息支出(利息保障)。這樣,我們既考慮債務的絕對數量,也考慮爲債務支付的利率。

Weak interest cover of 2.4 times and a disturbingly high net debt to EBITDA ratio of 5.9 hit our confidence in American Electric Power Company like a one-two punch to the gut. The debt burden here is substantial. However, one redeeming factor is that American Electric Power Company grew its EBIT at 13% over the last 12 months, boosting its ability to handle its debt. 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 American Electric Power Company can strengthen its balance sheet over time. So if you're focused on the future you can check out this free report showing analyst profit forecasts.

2.4倍的薄弱利息覆蓋率和令人不安的高淨負債與息稅折舊攤銷前利潤的5.9比率打擊了我們對美國電力公司的信心,就像是一二的衝擊。這裏的債務負擔是沉重的。但是,一個補償因素是,美國電力公司的息稅前利潤在過去12個月中增長了13%,增強了其處理債務的能力。毫無疑問,我們從資產負債表中學到的關於債務的知識最多。但最終,該業務的未來盈利能力將決定美國電力公司能否隨着時間的推移加強其資產負債表。因此,如果您專注於未來,可以查看這份顯示分析師利潤預測的免費報告。

Finally, while the tax-man may adore accounting profits, lenders only accept cold hard cash. So it's worth checking how much of that EBIT is backed by free cash flow. During the last three years, American Electric Power Company burned a lot of cash. While that may be a result of expenditure for growth, it does make the debt far more risky.

最後,儘管稅務人員可能喜歡會計利潤,但貸款人只接受冷硬現金。因此,值得檢查一下息稅前利潤中有多少是由自由現金流支持的。在過去的三年中,美國電力公司消耗了大量現金。儘管這可能是增長支出的結果,但它確實使債務風險大大增加。

Our View

我們的觀點

On the face of it, American Electric Power Company's net debt to EBITDA 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. But at least it's pretty decent at growing its EBIT; that's encouraging. It's also worth noting that American Electric Power Company is in the Electric Utilities industry, which is often considered to be quite defensive. We're quite clear that we consider American Electric Power Company to be really rather risky, as a result of its balance sheet health. For this reason we're pretty cautious about the stock, and we think shareholders should keep a close eye on its liquidity. 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. To that end, you should learn about the 3 warning signs we've spotted with American Electric Power Company (including 1 which is a bit unpleasant) .

從表面上看,美國電力公司的淨負債佔息稅折舊攤銷前利潤的比例使我們對該股持初步看法,其將息稅前利潤轉換爲自由現金流並不比一年中最繁忙的夜晚那家空蕩蕩的餐廳更具吸引力。但至少它在增長息稅前利潤方面相當不錯;這令人鼓舞。還值得注意的是,美國電力公司屬於電力公用事業行業,人們通常認爲該行業具有很強的防禦性。我們很清楚,由於資產負債表的健康狀況,我們認爲美國電力公司的風險確實相當大。出於這個原因,我們對該股非常謹慎,我們認爲股東應密切關注其流動性。毫無疑問,我們從資產負債表中學到的關於債務的知識最多。但是,並非所有的投資風險都存在於資產負債表中,遠非如此。爲此,你應該了解我們在美國電力公司發現的3個警告信號(包括一個有點不愉快的警告)。

At the end of the day, it's often better to focus on companies that are free from net debt. You can access our special list of such companies (all with a track record of profit growth). It's free.

歸根結底,通常最好將注意力集中在沒有淨負債的公司身上。您可以訪問我們的此類公司的特別名單(所有公司都有利潤增長記錄)。它是免費的。

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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.

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Simply Wall St的這篇文章本質上是籠統的。我們僅使用公正的方法根據歷史數據和分析師的預測提供評論,我們的文章無意作爲財務建議。它不構成買入或賣出任何股票的建議,也沒有考慮到您的目標或財務狀況。我們的目標是爲您提供由基本數據驅動的長期重點分析。請注意,我們的分析可能不考慮最新的價格敏感型公司公告或定性材料。簡而言之,華爾街沒有持有任何上述股票的頭寸。

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