Shares of Southwestern Energy (NYSE:SWN) moved lower by 3.23% in the past three months. Before we understand the importance of debt, let us look at how much debt Southwestern Energy has.
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Southwestern Energy's Debt
According to the Southwestern Energy's most recent financial statement as reported on November 4, 2021, total debt is at $4.28 billion, with $4.04 billion in long-term debt and $243.00 million in current debt. Adjusting for $12.00 million in cash-equivalents, the company has a net debt of $4.27 billion.
Let's define some of the terms we used in the paragraph above. Current debt is the portion of a company's debt which is due within 1 year, while long-term debt is the portion due in more than 1 year. Cash equivalents include cash and any liquid securities with maturity periods of 90 days or less. Total debt equals current debt plus long-term debt minus cash equivalents.
Investors look at the debt-ratio to understand how much financial leverage a company has. Southwestern Energy has $9.24 billion in total assets, therefore making the debt-ratio 0.46. Generally speaking, a debt-ratio more than one means that a large portion of debt is funded by assets. As the debt-ratio increases, so the does the risk of defaulting on loans, if interest rates were to increase. Different industries have different thresholds of tolerance for debt-ratios. A debt ratio of 40% might be higher for one industry and average for another.
Importance Of Debt
Debt is an important factor in the capital structure of a company, and can help it attain growth. Debt usually has a relatively lower financing cost than equity, which makes it an attractive option for executives.
However, due to interest-payment obligations, cash-flow of a company can be impacted. Equity owners can keep excess profit, generated from the debt capital, when companies use the debt capital for its business operations.
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