We can readily understand why investors are attracted to unprofitable companies. For example, EMvision Medical Devices (ASX:EMV) shareholders have done very well over the last year, with the share price soaring by 183%. Having said that, unprofitable companies are risky because they could potentially burn through all their cash and become distressed.

Given its strong share price performance, we think it's worthwhile for EMvision Medical Devices shareholders to consider whether its cash burn is concerning. 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. First, we'll determine its cash runway by comparing its cash burn with its cash reserves.

See our latest analysis for EMvision Medical Devices

How Long Is EMvision Medical Devices' Cash Runway?

A company's cash runway is the amount of time it would take to burn through its cash reserves at its current cash burn rate. When EMvision Medical Devices last reported its balance sheet in June 2020, it had zero debt and cash worth AU$5.4m. Looking at the last year, the company burnt through AU$3.3m. So it had a cash runway of approximately 20 months from June 2020. That's not too bad, but it's fair to say the end of the cash runway is in sight, unless cash burn reduces drastically. You can see how its cash balance has changed over time in the image below. debt-equity-history-analysis

How Is EMvision Medical Devices' Cash Burn Changing Over Time?

In our view, EMvision Medical Devices doesn't yet produce significant amounts of operating revenue, since it reported just AU$1.4m in the last twelve months. As a result, we think it's a bit early to focus on the revenue growth, so we'll limit ourselves to looking at how the cash burn is changing over time. With the cash burn rate up 47% in the last year, it seems that the company is ratcheting up investment in the business over time. However, the company's true cash runway will therefore be shorter than suggested above, if spending continues to increase. In reality, this article only makes a short study of the company's growth data. You can take a look at how EMvision Medical Devices has developed its business over time by checking  this visualization of its revenue and earnings history.



Can EMvision Medical Devices Raise More Cash Easily?

Given its cash burn trajectory, EMvision Medical Devices shareholders may wish to consider how easily it could raise more cash, despite its solid cash runway. 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 looking at a company's cash burn relative to its market capitalisation, we gain insight on how much shareholders would be diluted if the company needed to raise enough cash to cover another year's cash burn.

Since it has a market capitalisation of AU$193m, EMvision Medical Devices' AU$3.3m in cash burn equates to about 1.7% of its market value. That means it could easily issue a few shares to fund more growth, and might well be in a position to borrow cheaply.

Is EMvision Medical Devices' Cash Burn A Worry?

Even though its increasing cash burn makes us a little nervous, we are compelled to mention that we thought EMvision Medical Devices' cash burn relative to its market cap was relatively promising. Considering all the factors discussed in this article, we're not overly concerned about the company's cash burn, although we do think shareholders should keep an eye on how it develops. Readers need to have a sound understanding of business risks before investing in a stock, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for EMvision Medical Devices that potential shareholders should take into account before putting money into a stock.

Of course EMvision Medical Devices may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this freecollection of companies boasting high return on equity, or this list of stocks that insiders are buying.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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.

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