Samsung Electronics’ cash reserves still remained high despite a slump in its business in the first quarter of the year, its financial report showed on May 13, leaving room for more investment and shareholder-friendly policies.

The company’s liquidity ratio stood at 263 percent as of March, up from 227 percent a year earlier, according to its latest financial statement.
 

Liquidity ratios are measurements used to examine the ability of an organization to pay off its short-term obligations. The higher the ratio, the more financially secure a company is in the short term.

The South Korean tech giant’s liquidity ratio has remained over 200 percent since 2012, and the latest figure is the second highest since 271 percent in the second quarter of 2016.

Samsung’s total assets broke the previous record to reach 345.7 trillion won ($292.8 billion) in the first quarter, making it the formidable industry leader in the nation, its report said.

Its cash flow totaled 102 trillion won, hovering over 100 trillion won for the second consecutive quarter.

The firm’s debt-equity ratio fell to the lowest-ever level of 36 percent at the end of March, shedding one percentage point from three months earlier.

The world’s largest memory chip and smartphone maker spent 18.6 trillion won on research and development in 2018, with its ratio to total sales reaching 7.7 percent.

By Ram Garikipati and newswires (ram@heraldcorp.com)