Yahoo Finance Is Zynerba Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ZYNE) In A Good Position To Invest In Growth?
We can readily understand why investors are attracted to unprofitable companies. 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, the natural question for Zynerba Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ZYNE) shareholders is whether they should be concerned by its rate of cash burn. In this report, we will consider the company's annual negative free cash flow, henceforth referring to it as the 'cash burn'. First, we'll determine its cash runway by comparing its cash burn with its cash reserves.
Check out our latest analysis for Zynerba Pharmaceuticals
Does Zynerba Pharmaceuticals Have A Long Cash Runway?
A company's cash runway is the amount of time it would take to burn through its cash reserves at its current cash burn rate. Zynerba Pharmaceuticals has such a small amount of debt that we'll set it aside, and focus on the US$59m in cash it held at December 2020. Importantly, its cash burn was US$42m over the trailing twelve months. Therefore, from December 2020 it had roughly 17 months of cash runway. Importantly, analysts think that Zynerba Pharmaceuticals will reach cashflow breakeven in 5 years. Essentially, that means the company will either reduce its cash burn, or else require more cash. The image below shows how its cash balance has been changing over the last few years.
How Is Zynerba Pharmaceuticals' Cash Burn Changing Over Time?
Whilst it's great to see that Zynerba Pharmaceuticals has already begun generating revenue from operations, last year it only produced US$86k, so we don't think it is generating significant revenue, at this point. As a result, we think it's a bit early to focus on the revenue growth, so we'll limit ourselves to looking at how the cash burn is changing over time. Over the last year its cash burn actually increased by 19%, which suggests that management are increasing investment in future growth, but not too quickly. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but investors should be mindful of the fact that will shorten the cash runway. While the past is always worth studying, it is the future that matters most of all. So you might want to take a peek at how much the company is expected to grow in the next few years.
How Easily Can Zynerba Pharmaceuticals Raise Cash?
Given its cash burn trajectory, Zynerba Pharmaceuticals shareholders may wish to consider how easily it could raise more cash, despite its solid cash runway. Companies can raise capital through either debt or equity. Many companies end up issuing new shares to fund future 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.
Zynerba Pharmaceuticals has a market capitalisation of US$194m and burnt through US$42m last year, which is 22% of the company's market value. That's not insignificant, and if the company had to sell enough shares to fund another year's growth at the current share price, you'd likely witness fairly costly dilution.
Is Zynerba Pharmaceuticals' Cash Burn A Worry?
On this analysis of Zynerba Pharmaceuticals' cash burn, we think its cash runway was reassuring, while its increasing cash burn has us a bit worried. One real positive is that analysts are forecasting that the company will reach breakeven. Even though we don't think it has a problem with its cash burn, the analysis we've done in this article does suggest that shareholders should give some careful thought to the potential cost of raising more money in the future. Taking a deeper dive, we've spotted 4 warning signs for Zynerba Pharmaceuticals you should be aware of, and 2 of them make us uncomfortable.
Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of companies insiders are buying, and this list of stocks growth stocks (according to analyst forecasts)
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. 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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