National Beverage Corp (FIZZ)

The liquidity ratios of National Beverage Corp have demonstrated notable variation over the examined periods. The current ratio, which measures the company’s ability to meet short-term obligations with its current assets, was consistently at 2.54 on April 29 and 30, 2023, indicating a comfortable liquidity position. By April 27 and 30, 2024, the current ratio increased significantly to 3.89, suggesting improved short-term liquidity and an increased buffer in current assets relative to current liabilities. However, by April 30, 2025, the current ratio declined to 2.90, still indicating a healthy liquidity position but reflecting a reduction from the peak observed the previous year.

The quick ratio, which provides a more stringent measure by excluding inventory from current assets, exhibited similar trends. It was steady at 1.82 during April 2023 but saw a substantial increase to 3.12 by April 2024. This surge implies that the company's most liquid assets—excluding inventory—improved markedly, enhancing its ability to cover immediate liabilities. By April 30, 2025, the quick ratio decreased to 2.12, yet remained at a solid level above 2, indicating continued sufficient liquidity in easily convertible assets.

The cash ratio, representing the most conservative liquidity measure based solely on cash and cash equivalents, showed a steady increase from 1.10 in April 2023 to 2.37 in April 2024. This indicates a significant strengthening in cash reserves relative to current liabilities, increasing the company's ability to settle its short-term obligations promptly. By April 30, 2025, the cash ratio declined to 1.38, but remained above 1, signifying that cash holdings continued to provide a comfortable liquidity cushion.

Overall, the liquidity position of National Beverage Corp improved notably in the fiscal year ending April 2024, with all three ratios peaking during this period. The subsequent decrease in 2025 indicates a slight reduction in liquidity but still reflects a generally healthy short-term financial stability across all measured dimensions.

---

Additional liquidity measure

The analysis of National Beverage Corp’s cash conversion cycle (CCC) over the provided periods indicates a trend of gradual improvement in working capital efficiency. As of April 29 and April 30, 2023, the CCC stood at approximately 36.63 days, reflecting the time taken for the company to convert its investments in inventory and accounts receivable into cash, net of its accounts payable period. By April 27 and April 30, 2024, this figure decreased to approximately 34.52 days, suggesting a reduction of approximately 2 days in the cash conversion cycle, which implies enhanced operational efficiency in managing receivables, inventory, and payables. Further improvement is observed by April 30, 2025, with the CCC declining to approximately 32.93 days, representing an overall reduction of nearly 3.7 days from the initial period in 2023. This downward trend indicates that National Beverage Corp has been able to shorten the time it takes to convert inventory and receivables into cash, potentially through optimized inventory management, quicker collection of receivables, or extended payment terms with suppliers. Overall, the reduction in the CCC over the analyzed periods reflects a positive movement towards improved liquidity management and operational effectiveness.