What does a cash ratio less than 1 mean?
If a company's cash ratio is less than 1, there are more current liabilities than cash and cash equivalents. It means insufficient cash on hand exists to pay off short-term debt.
But if the ratio is less than one, that means the company's cash and equivalents are not enough to cover upcoming spending outflows, which creates the need for easily liquidated assets (e.g. inventory, accounts receivable).
The cash ratio indicates to creditors, analysts, and investors the percentage of a company's current liabilities that cash and cash equivalents will cover. A ratio above 1 means that a company will be able to pay off its current liabilities with cash and cash equivalents, and have funds left over.
If a company has a current ratio of less than one, it has fewer current assets than current liabilities. Creditors would consider the company a financial risk because it might not be able to easily pay down its short-term obligations.
A ratio of 1 means that a company can exactly pay off all its current liabilities with its current assets. A ratio of less than 1 (e.g., 0.75) would imply that a company is not able to satisfy its current liabilities. A ratio greater than 1 (e.g., 2.0) would imply that a company is able to satisfy its current bills.
After dividing the sum with the company's current liabilities, you can see whether it can pay off outstanding debts. Anything above 1 shows that a company can pay off outstanding debts and still have a surplus of cash left. There is no ideal figure, but a cash ratio is considered good if it is between 0.5 and 1.
0.2 is considered to be the ideal cash ratio.
So, a low cash ratio means that the amount of short-term liabilities a business has is either similar to or higher than the number of assets it has to pay off those liabilities. A low cash ratio means that a business is less likely to be able to pay off short-term loans.
A higher result means the company is more capable of paying off short-term liabilities with its short-term assets. A lower number, though, is preferable in some situations. A cash ratio over one means the company can easily cover its debts, but there may be more efficient uses for some cash on hand.
The cash ratio is a critical metric for any business owner to track. It shows your company's time to generate new cash flow to pay short-term liabilities. The ratio can be affected by many factors, including your business's financial health, industry, and cash on hand.
Is a current ratio of less than 1 good?
As a general rule, a current ratio below 1.00 could indicate that a company might struggle to meet its short-term obligations, whereas ratios of above 1.00 might indicate a company is able to pay its current debts as they come due.
If your current ratio is low, it means you will have a difficult time paying your immediate debts and liabilities. In general, a current ratio of 2 or higher is considered good, and anything lower than 2 is a cause for concern. However, good current ratios will be different from industry to industry.
If a current ratio is at 1
If a company calculates its current ratio to be at, or slightly above, 1, this means that the company's assets can pay for its debts that are due at the end of the year. This means an organization is likely to make money or break even.
A low liquidity ratio, such as 0.5, indicates that a company does not have enough current assets to cover their current liabilities. If these current liabilities needed to be paid sooner than expected, the company would not be able to afford.
A good current ratio is between 1.2 to 2, which means that the business has 2 times more current assets than liabilities to covers its debts. A current ratio below 1 means that the company doesn't have enough liquid assets to cover its short-term liabilities.
Generally, a Quick Ratio of 1.0 or greater is considered adequate to ensure a company's ability to pay its current obligations.
50% = 50/100. = 5/10. = 1/2. = 0.5 = 0.50 (decimal)
In short, a “good” liquidity ratio is anything higher than 1. Having said that, a liquidity ratio of 1 is unlikely to prove that your business is worthy of investment. Generally speaking, creditors and investors will look for an accounting liquidity ratio of around 2 or 3.
Generally speaking, a good quick ratio is anything above 1 or 1:1. A ratio of 1:1 would mean the company has the same amount of liquid assets as current liabilities. A higher ratio indicates the company could pay off current liabilities several times over.
Key Takeaways
Whether or not a debt ratio is "good" depends on the context: the company's industrial sector, the prevailing interest rate, etc. In general, many investors look for a company to have a debt ratio between 0.3 and 0.6.
What does a current ratio of 1.2 mean?
A current ratio of 1.2 indicates that the current assets are 1.2 times the current liabilities. The current assets are greater than the current liabilities, which indicates the good liquidity position of the company.
Common size analysis displays each line item of your financial statement as a percentage of a base figure to help you determine how your company is performing year over year, and compared to competitors. It also shows the impact of each line item on the overall revenue, cash flow or asset figures for your company.
The cash ratio is a measure of the liquidity of a firm, namely the ratio of the total assets and cash equivalents of a firm to its current liabilities. The metric calculates the ability of a company to repay its short-term debt with cash or near-cash resources, such as securities which are easily marketable.
Cash ratio is the measure of a company's liquidity. It indicates the company's ability to pay off its short-term debt obligations with its most liquid assets, which are cash and cash equivalents. It is primarily the ratio between the cash and cash equivalents of a company to its current liabilities.
Generally, your current ratio shows the ability of your business to generate cash to meet its short-term obligations. A decline in this ratio can be attributable to an increase in short-term debt, a decrease in current assets, or a combination of both.
References
- https://groww.in/p/operating-cash-flow-ratio
- http://erepository.uonbi.ac.ke/bitstream/handle/11295/103008/Ndirangu_Effects%20Of%20Cash%20Management%20On%20The%20Financial%20Performance%20Of%20The%20Companies%20Listed%20At%20The%20Nairobi%20Securities%20Exchange.pdf?sequence=1
- https://www.bdc.ca/en/articles-tools/entrepreneur-toolkit/financial-tools/cash-ratio
- https://gaviti.com/5-tips-to-reduce-your-cash-conversion-cycle/
- https://www.wolterskluwer.com/en/expert-insights/business-ratios
- https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/negative-cash-flow
- https://homework.study.com/explanation/a-negative-cash-conversion-cycle-indicates-that-the-a-operating-cycle-exceeds-the-average-payment-period-b-average-payment-period-exceeds-the-operating-cycle-c-firm-is-shortening-its-average-payment-period-and-lengthening-its-average-collection-period-d.html
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/cashconversioncycle.asp
- https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/021215/what-good-debt-ratio-and-what-bad-debt-ratio.asp
- https://www.wallstreetprep.com/knowledge/cash-ratio/
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/cash-ratio.asp
- https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/062714/what-are-main-differences-between-current-ratio-and-quick-ratio.asp
- https://www.accountingcoach.com/blog/negative-cash-balance
- https://alphabridge.co/featured/amazons-cash-conversion-cycle/
- https://medium.com/@ashwinpalo/business-efficiency-navigating-the-dynamics-of-a-negative-cash-conversion-cycle-a7152a35b2bd
- https://www.oberlanderandco.com/insights/current-ratio
- https://www.uschamber.com/co/start/strategy/why-small-businesses-fail
- https://www.fe.training/free-resources/accounting/cash-conversion-ratio/
- https://www.cashanalytics.com/cash-conversion-cycle/
- https://altline.sobanco.com/what-is-the-cash-ratio-and-how-is-it-used/
- https://www.forbes.com/sites/ycharts/2012/03/10/the-cash-conversion-cycle/
- https://www.extension.iastate.edu/agdm/wholefarm/html/c3-24.html
- https://trovata.io/blog/financial-efficiency-cash-conversion-cycle/
- https://www.tradefinanceglobal.com/treasury-management/cash-conversion-cycle-definition-and-uses/
- https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/current-ratio
- https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/234629757.pdf
- https://www.patriotsoftware.com/blog/accounting/what-is-negative-cash-flow/
- https://www.chegg.com/homework-help/questions-and-answers/long-company-s-cash-flows-continue-indefinitely-provided-company-survives-meets-debt-oblig-q124751390
- https://www.klipfolio.com/resources/kpi-examples/financial/cash-and-cash-equivalents
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/cashflow.asp
- https://www.vintti.com/blog/cash-ratio-formula-accounting-explained/
- https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/accounting/cash-ratio-formula/
- https://www.verifiedmetrics.com/blog/cash-ratio-definition-importance-and-calculation
- https://fourweekmba.com/cash-conversion-cycle-amazon/
- https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/small-business/common-size-analysis
- https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/cash-crunch-silent-killer-business-elizabeth-cooper
- https://gocardless.com/en-us/guides/posts/what-is-a-liquidity-ratio/
- https://www.klipfolio.com/resources/kpi-examples/supply-chain/cash-conversion-ratio
- https://fundbox.com/blog/cash-conversion-cycle/
- https://extranet.education.unimelb.edu.au/SME/TNMY/Arithmetic/percent/meaning/percentmean.html
- https://homework.study.com/explanation/when-might-a-negative-cash-flow-be-considered-positive-provide-an-example-and-explain.html
- https://managementstudyguide.com/cash-ratio.htm
- https://www.wallstreetprep.com/knowledge/free-cash-flow-conversion-rate-fcf/
- https://www.mosaic.tech/financial-metrics/cash-in-out
- https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/why-negative-cash-flow-always-bad-velotrade
- https://cashanalytics.com/cash-conversion-cycle/
- https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/accounting/cash-conversion-ratio/
- https://agicap.com/en/article/cash-flow-positive/
- https://www.wallstreetmojo.com/cash-ratio/
- https://www.unomaha.edu/nebraska-business-development-center/_files/publications/cash-flow.pdf
- https://seekingalpha.com/article/4520581-cash-conversion-cycle-definition-formula
- https://www.americanexpress.com/en-us/business/trends-and-insights/articles/how-the-cash-flow-conversion-ratio-can-boost-business-liquidity/
- https://homework.study.com/explanation/what-does-a-current-ratio-of-1-2-indicate.html
- https://blog.concannonmiller.com/4thought/shorten-your-cash-conversion-cycle-to-boost-your-businesss-bottom-line
- https://www.superfastcpa.com/what-is-negative-cash-on-the-balance-sheet/
- https://flow.space/blog/cash-to-cash-cycle/
- https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/operating-cycle-vs-cash-cycle
- https://cleartax.in/glossary/cash-ratio
- https://taulia.com/glossary/what-is-the-cash-conversion-cycle-ccc/
- https://www.bgateway.com/resources/increase-your-profitability
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/dscr.asp
- https://www.screener.in/screens/228040/cash-conversion-cycle/
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/06/cashconversioncycle.asp
- https://www.wallstreetprep.com/knowledge/cash-conversion-ratio/
- https://cleartax.in/glossary/cash-conversion-cycle
- https://journals.iium.edu.my/enmjournal/index.php/enmj/article/download/654/325
- https://www.triplewhale.com/blog/negative-cash-conversion-cycle-tips
- https://www.theforage.com/blog/skills/quick-ratio
- https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/cash-ratio
- https://www.freshbooks.com/hub/accounting/good-liquidity-ratio
- https://learn.saylor.org/mod/book/view.php?id=53851&chapterid=38198
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/currentratio.asp
- https://www.carboncollective.co/sustainable-investing/cash-flow-coverage-ratio
- https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/cash-conversion-cycle-ccc-ratio-negative-good-sign-bad-katyarmal
- https://www.invoiced.com/resources/blog/5-tips-to-shorten-cash-conversion-cycle
- https://www.highradius.com/resources/Blog/what-is-cash-conversion-cycle/
- https://www.novuna.co.uk/business-cash-flow/cash-flow-finance-resource-hub/cash-flow-terms/cash-flow-ratios/
- https://dokka.com/glossary/cash-conversion-ratio/
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/cashflowfinvestingactivities.asp
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/redflag.asp
- https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/05/060105.asp
- https://beef.unl.edu/six-factors-affecting-profit
- https://study.com/learn/lesson/liquidity-ratio-calculation-analysis.html
- https://www.icicidirect.com/ilearn/stocks/articles/what-is-cash-ratio
- https://www.stenn.com/news/what-is-cash-ratio-formula-definition
- https://www.velotrade.com/blog/what-is-negative-cash-flow/
- https://www.americanexpress.com/en-us/business/blueprint/resource-center/finance/how-long-can-a-business-operate-with-negative-cash-flow/
- https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/accounting/liquidity-ratio/