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These 4 Measures Indicate That Becton Dickinson (NYSE:BDX) Is Using Debt Reasonably Well

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. We can see that Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) does use debt in its business. But is this debt a concern to shareholders?

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. In the worst case scenario, a company can go bankrupt if it cannot pay its creditors. 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 thing to do when considering how much debt a business uses is to look at its cash and debt together.

See our latest analysis for Becton Dickinson

What Is Becton Dickinson's Net Debt?

As you can see below, Becton Dickinson had US$16.5b of debt at December 2022, down from US$17.4b a year prior. However, it also had US$612.0m in cash, and so its net debt is US$15.8b.

debt-equity-history-analysis
debt-equity-history-analysis

How Healthy Is Becton Dickinson's Balance Sheet?

According to the last reported balance sheet, Becton Dickinson had liabilities of US$7.63b due within 12 months, and liabilities of US$20.0b due beyond 12 months. Offsetting these obligations, it had cash of US$612.0m as well as receivables valued at US$2.28b due within 12 months. So it has liabilities totalling US$24.8b more than its cash and near-term receivables, combined.

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This deficit isn't so bad because Becton Dickinson is worth a massive US$72.3b, and thus could probably raise enough capital to shore up its balance sheet, if the need arose. But it's clear that we should definitely closely examine whether it can manage its debt without dilution.

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.

Becton Dickinson has a debt to EBITDA ratio of 3.3 and its EBIT covered its interest expense 6.6 times. Taken together this implies that, while we wouldn't want to see debt levels rise, we think it can handle its current leverage. One way Becton Dickinson could vanquish its debt would be if it stops borrowing more but continues to grow EBIT at around 13%, as it did over the last year. 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 Becton Dickinson'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. So we clearly need to look at whether that EBIT is leading to corresponding free cash flow. Over the last three years, Becton Dickinson recorded free cash flow worth a fulsome 95% of its EBIT, which is stronger than we'd usually expect. That puts it in a very strong position to pay down debt.

Our View

The good news is that Becton Dickinson's demonstrated ability to convert EBIT to free cash flow delights us like a fluffy puppy does a toddler. But truth be told we feel its net debt to EBITDA does undermine this impression a bit. It's also worth noting that Becton Dickinson is in the Medical Equipment industry, which is often considered to be quite defensive. Taking all this data into account, it seems to us that Becton Dickinson takes a pretty sensible approach to debt. While that brings some risk, it can also enhance returns for shareholders. 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. These risks can be hard to spot. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Becton Dickinson you should know about.

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.

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.

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