What Does Baker Hughes' Debt Look Like?

Over the past three months, shares of Baker Hughes Inc. BKR rose by 11.22%. Before having a look at the importance of debt, let's look at how much debt Baker Hughes has.

Baker Hughes Debt

According to the Baker Hughes's most recent balance sheet as reported on February 14, 2023, total debt is at $6.66 billion, with $5.98 billion in long-term debt and $677.00 million in current debt. Adjusting for $2.49 billion in cash-equivalents, the company has a net debt of $4.17 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 includes 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.

To understand the degree of financial leverage a company has, shareholders look at the debt ratio. Considering Baker Hughes's $34.18 billion in total assets, the debt-ratio is at 0.19. As a rule of thumb, a debt-ratio more than 1 indicates that a considerable portion of debt is funded by assets. A higher debt-ratio can also imply that the company might be putting itself at risk for default, if interest rates were to increase. However, debt-ratios vary widely across different industries. For example, a debt ratio of 25% might be higher for one industry, but normal 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. Having financial leverage also allows companies to use additional capital for business operations, allowing equity owners to retain excess profit, generated by the debt capital.

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This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and reviewed by an editor.