What Does Comcast's Debt Look Like?

Shares of Comcast Inc. CMCSA increased by 9.69% in the past three months. Before having a look at the importance of debt, let's look at how much debt Comcast has.

Comcast Debt

Based on Comcast's financial statement as of April 27, 2023, long-term debt is at $94.40 billion and current debt is at $6.30 billion, amounting to $100.71 billion in total debt. Adjusted for $5.54 billion in cash-equivalents, the company's net debt is at $95.17 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 Comcast's $259.43 billion in total assets, the debt-ratio is at 0.39. Generally speaking, a debt-ratio more than 1 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 35% might be higher for one industry, but average for another.

Why Debt Is Important

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.

Interest-payment obligations can impact the cash-flow of the company. 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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This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and reviewed by an editor.