 Over the past three months, shares of John B Sanfilippo Son Inc. NASDAQ: JBSS increased by 5.59. Before having a look at the importance of debt, lets look at how much debt John B Sanfilippo Son has.John B Sanfilippo Sons Debt According to the John B Sanfilippo Sons most recent financial statement as reported on April 30, 2020, total debt is at 62.13 million, with 15.67 million in long-term debt and 46.46 million in current debt. Adjusting for 993.00 thousand in cash-equivalents, the company has a net debt of 61.14 million.Shareholders look at the debt-ratio to understand how much financial leverage a company has. John B Sanfilippo Son has 430.69 million in total assets, therefore making the debt-ratio 0.14. Generally speaking, a debt-ratio more than 1 means that a large portion of debt is funded by assets. As the debt-ratio increases, so the does the risk of defaulting on loans, if interest rates were to increase. Different industries have different thresholds of tolerance for debt-ratios. A debt ratio of 35 might be higher for one industry, whereas average for another.Why Shareholders Look At Debt? Debt is an important factor in the capital structure of a company, and can help it attain growth. Debt usually has a relatively lower financing cost than equity, which makes it an attractive option for executives.Interest-payment obligations can impact the cash-flow of the company. Having financial leverage also allows companies to use additional capital for business operations, allowing equity owners to retain excess profit, generated by the debt capital.See more from Benzinga Earnings Scheduled For August 19, 2020C 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. 