Howard Marks put it nicely when he said that, rather than worrying about share price volatility, ‘The possibility of permanent loss is the risk I worry about… and every practical investor I know worries about.’ So it seems the smart money knows that debt – which is usually involved in bankruptcies – is a very important factor, when you assess how risky a company is. We can see that China Technology Industry Group Limited (HKG:8111) does use debt in its business. But the real question is whether this debt is making the company risky.

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When Is Debt Dangerous?

Generally speaking, debt only becomes a real problem when a company can’t easily pay it off, either by raising capital or with its own cash flow. If things get really bad, the lenders can take control of the business. However, a more frequent (but still costly) occurrence is where a company must issue shares at bargain-basement prices, permanently diluting shareholders, just to shore up its balance sheet. Of course, debt can be an important tool in businesses, particularly capital heavy businesses. The first thing to do when considering how much debt a business uses is to look at its cash and debt together.

What Is China Technology Industry Group’s Net Debt?

You can click the graphic below for the historical numbers, but it shows that as of March 2025 China Technology Industry Group had CN¥63.7m of debt, an increase on CN¥51.5m, over one year. On the flip side, it has CN¥6.63m in cash leading to net debt of about CN¥57.0m.

How Strong Is China Technology Industry Group’s Balance Sheet?

Zooming in on the latest balance sheet data, we can see that China Technology Industry Group had liabilities of CN¥34.1m due within 12 months and liabilities of CN¥40.5m due beyond that. On the other hand, it had cash of CN¥6.63m and CN¥37.9m worth of receivables due within a year. So its liabilities total CN¥30.1m more than the combination of its cash and short-term receivables.

This is a mountain of leverage relative to its market capitalization of CN¥43.0m. Should its lenders demand that it shore up the balance sheet, shareholders would likely face severe dilution. There’s no doubt that we learn most about debt from the balance sheet. But it is China Technology Industry Group’s earnings that will influence how the balance sheet holds up in the future. So when considering debt, it’s definitely worth looking at the earnings trend. Click here for an interactive snapshot.

View our latest analysis for China Technology Industry Group

In the last year China Technology Industry Group managed to produce its first revenue as a listed company, but given the lack of profit, shareholders will no doubt be hoping to see some strong increases.

Caveat Emptor

Importantly, China Technology Industry Group had an earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) loss over the last year. Its EBIT loss was a whopping CN¥17m. Considering that alongside the liabilities mentioned above does not give us much confidence that company should be using so much debt. So we think its balance sheet is a little strained, though not beyond repair. However, it doesn’t help that it burned through CN¥1.6m of cash over the last year. So to be blunt we think it is risky. The balance sheet is clearly the area to focus on when you are analysing debt. But ultimately, every company can contain risks that exist outside of the balance sheet. Case in point: We’ve spotted 3 warning signs for China Technology Industry Group you should be aware of.

If, after all that, you’re more interested in a fast growing company with a rock-solid balance sheet, then check out our list of net cash growth stocks without delay.

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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.