Yahoo Finance We're Keeping An Eye On Golden Minerals's (NYSEMKT:AUMN) Cash Burn Rate
There's no doubt that money can be made by owning shares of unprofitable businesses. For example, biotech and mining exploration companies often lose money for years before finding success with a new treatment or mineral discovery. Nonetheless, only a fool would ignore the risk that a loss making company burns through its cash too quickly.
So should Golden Minerals (NYSEMKT:AUMN) shareholders be worried about its cash burn? In this article, we define cash burn as its annual (negative) free cash flow, which is the amount of money a company spends each year to fund its growth. Let's start with an examination of the business's cash, relative to its cash burn.
See our latest analysis for Golden Minerals
How Long Is Golden Minerals's Cash Runway?
A company's cash runway is calculated by dividing its cash hoard by its cash burn. In September 2019, Golden Minerals had US$2.9m in cash, and was debt-free. In the last year, its cash burn was US$5.3m. So it had a cash runway of approximately 7 months from September 2019. To be frank, this kind of short runway puts us on edge, as it indicates the company must reduce its cash burn significantly, or else raise cash imminently. The image below shows how its cash balance has been changing over the last few years.
How Well Is Golden Minerals Growing?
Golden Minerals reduced its cash burn by 4.4% during the last year, which points to some degree of discipline. And operating revenue was up by 14%, too. On balance, we'd say the company is improving over time. Clearly, however, the crucial factor is whether the company will grow its business going forward. For that reason, it makes a lot of sense to take a look at our analyst forecasts for the company.
How Hard Would It Be For Golden Minerals To Raise More Cash For Growth?
Given Golden Minerals's revenue is receding, there's a considerable chance it will eventually need to raise more money to spend on driving growth. Companies can raise capital through either debt or equity. One of the main advantages held by publicly listed companies is that they can sell shares to investors to raise cash to fund growth. By looking at a company's cash burn relative to its market capitalisation, we gain insight on how much shareholders would be diluted if the company needed to raise enough cash to cover another year's cash burn.
Since it has a market capitalisation of US$34m, Golden Minerals's US$5.3m in cash burn equates to about 15% of its market value. As a result, we'd venture that the company could raise more cash for growth without much trouble, albeit at the cost of some dilution.
How Risky Is Golden Minerals's Cash Burn Situation?
On this analysis of Golden Minerals's cash burn, we think its revenue growth was reassuring, while its cash runway has us a bit worried. Looking at the factors mentioned in this short report, we do think that its cash burn is a bit risky, and it does make us slightly nervous about the stock. For us, it's always important to consider risks around cash burn rates. But investors should look at a whole range of factors when researching a new stock. For example, it could be interesting to see how much the Golden Minerals CEO receives in total remuneration.
Of course Golden Minerals may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of companies boasting high return on equity, or this list of stocks that insiders are buying.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.
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