New Fortress Energy Inc. — financial distress indicators
Financial-health summary
New Fortress Energy Inc.'s reported numbers place it in the 'Very weak' financial-health band (distress score 70/100). The main indicators are liabilities exceed assets (negative equity), cash runway under 12 months and revenue collapse. In its favour: high insider/promoter ownership (41%) aligns management with survival.
Stress by dimension
Share price — last 12 months
Indicators behind the score
Each red flag shows the evidence from the company’s own filings and the financial or legal principle behind it. Points add to the 0–100 score.
Total liabilities are 1.04× total assets.
Balance-sheet insolvency test: debts exceeding the fair value of assets is the statutory definition of 'insolvent' in 11 U.S.C. §101(32).
At the current free-cash-flow burn, cash covers ~2 months.
Going-concern standard: management must assess ability to continue for 12 months (ASC 205-40). Runway below that horizon forces dilution, asset sales or default.
Revenue changed -36% year over year.
A >30% sales drop typically breaches leverage covenants and starves fixed-cost coverage.
Recurring net losses.
Repeated losses are a core input in both Ohlson and Altman failure models.
Price is -76% from its 52-week high.
For financial firms a share-price run often precedes a deposit or funding run (confidence channel).
0 severe and 3 moderate distress-related headlines in the last 6 months.
Headlines are corroborating evidence only; they are weighted lightly and never drive a flag alone.
Operating margin fell from 39% to -11% in two years.
Sharp margin compression signals loss of pricing power or cost control.
Revenue vs net income
Cash generation
Debt vs cash vs equity
✅ Mitigating factors
- High insider/promoter ownership (41%) aligns management with survival.
📰 Recent news scan
- restructurNew Fortress Energy Inc. Successfully Completes Restructuring and Recapitalization Transaction & Capital Raise ParticipationYahoo Finance · 2026-09-11
- restructurNew Fortress Energy vs. ONEOK: Which Energy Stock Is a Better Buy in 2026?Yahoo Finance · 2026-06-24
- restructurNew Fortress Energy Inc. Announces Approval of UK Restructuring PlanYahoo Finance · 2026-06-18
- New Fortress Energy Inc. Announces Update on Reverse Stock SplitYahoo Finance · 2026-09-10
- New Fortress Energy Inc. Announces Reverse Stock SplitYahoo Finance · 2026-09-09
- Sector Update: Energy Stocks Fall Late AfternoonYahoo Finance · 2026-06-18
⚖️ U.S. legal pathway — Title 11, U.S. Code
Which chapter would apply?
- Chapter 11 — reorganisation. Management usually stays in control as debtor-in-possession; the automatic stay (§362) halts collection; a plan must meet the best-interests test (§1129(a)(7)) and the absolute priority rule (§1129(b)) — creditors are paid before shareholders, who are frequently wiped out.
- Chapter 7 — liquidation. A trustee sells assets and distributes proceeds by statutory priority (§§507, 726).
- Subchapter V (“Chapter 5”) is a fast track for small-business debtors under a statutory debt cap, but SEC-reporting companies are excluded (§101(51D)) — so it rarely applies to listed companies.
What typically triggers a filing
- Payment default or covenant breach lenders will not waive; a debt maturity that cannot be refinanced.
- Auditor going-concern doubt (ASC 205-40 / PCAOB AS 2415) — often itself a default trigger in loan agreements.
- Creditors can force a case with an involuntary petition (§303) if debts are not paid as they come due.
- Delisting after sustained sub-$1 prices or equity deficits cuts off equity funding.
Transactions shortly before filing can be clawed back (preferences — 90 days, §547; fraudulent transfers — 2 years, §548).
Frequently asked questions
What do New Fortress Energy Inc.'s financial-health indicators show?
As of 2026-10-08, New Fortress Energy Inc.'s public financial data places it in the 'Very weak' band with a distress score of 70/100, driven by liabilities exceed assets (negative equity), cash runway under 12 months and revenue collapse. This is a statistical screen of reported numbers — it does not mean the company is insolvent, has defaulted or will enter insolvency proceedings.
What is New Fortress Energy Inc.'s financial distress score?
70/100 ('Very weak').
What works in New Fortress Energy Inc.'s favour?
High insider/promoter ownership (41%) aligns management with survival.
How are shareholders treated if a company enters insolvency?
In a Chapter 11 reorganisation the absolute priority rule pays secured lenders, then unsecured creditors, before shareholders — so existing shares are usually cancelled or heavily diluted. In Chapter 7 the company is liquidated and shareholders rarely recover anything.
Other Energy, Oil & Gas companies with distress indicators
- Sky Quarry Inc. (SKYQ)Very weak 100/100
- SolarMax Technology, Inc. (SMXT)Very weak 100/100
- Spruce Power Holding Corporation (SPRU)Very weak 100/100
- Vivakor, Inc. (VIVK)Very weak 100/100
- SUNation Energy Inc. (SUNE)Very weak 86/100
- Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ)Very weak 74/100
Methodology
Score = capped sum of rule-based red flags across seven dimensions (liquidity, solvency, profitability, cash flow, sales trend, market signal, news). Ohlson O-score (1980) gives an accounting-based 1-year failure probability; Merton distance-to-default (Bharath & Shumway 2008) gives a market-implied probability. Financial institutions use a capital-based rule set. Recalculated every trading day from the latest filings, prices and news.