Yahoo Finance We Think Boardwalktech Software (CVE:BWLK) Needs To Drive Business Growth Carefully
Just because a business does not make any money, does not mean that the stock will go down. 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 Boardwalktech Software (CVE:BWLK) shareholders is whether they should be concerned by its rate of 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' cash, relative to its cash burn.
View our latest analysis for Boardwalktech Software
How Long Is Boardwalktech Software's Cash Runway?
A cash runway is defined as the length of time it would take a company to run out of money if it kept spending at its current rate of cash burn. As at September 2021, Boardwalktech Software had cash of US$2.2m and such minimal debt that we can ignore it for the purposes of this analysis. Looking at the last year, the company burnt through US$3.0m. Therefore, from September 2021 it had roughly 9 months of cash runway. That's quite a short cash runway, indicating the company must either reduce its annual cash burn or replenish its cash. Depicted below, you can see how its cash holdings have changed over time.
How Well Is Boardwalktech Software Growing?
Notably, Boardwalktech Software actually ramped up its cash burn very hard and fast in the last year, by 135%, signifying heavy investment in the business. As if that's not bad enough, the operating revenue also dropped by 8.7%, making us very wary indeed. Taken together, we think these growth metrics are a little worrying. In reality, this article only makes a short study of the company's growth data. This graph of historic earnings and revenue shows how Boardwalktech Software is building its business over time.
Can Boardwalktech Software Raise More Cash Easily?
Since Boardwalktech Software can't yet boast improving growth metrics, the market will likely be considering how it can raise more cash if need be. Generally speaking, a listed business can raise new cash through issuing shares or taking on debt. Many companies end up issuing new shares to fund future growth. By comparing a company's annual cash burn to its total market capitalisation, we can estimate roughly how many shares it would have to issue in order to run the company for another year (at the same burn rate).
Boardwalktech Software has a market capitalisation of US$24m and burnt through US$3.0m last year, which is 12% of the company's 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.
So, Should We Worry About Boardwalktech Software's Cash Burn?
Even though its increasing cash burn makes us a little nervous, we are compelled to mention that we thought Boardwalktech Software's cash burn relative to its market cap was relatively promising. Summing up, we think the Boardwalktech Software's cash burn is a risk, based on the factors we mentioned in this article. Separately, we looked at different risks affecting the company and spotted 4 warning signs for Boardwalktech Software (of which 2 make us uncomfortable!) you should know about.
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)
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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.
