Long-Term Debt
What is it?
Long-term debt is loans and obligations that are due in more than a year. It's on the liability side of the balance sheet and includes things like bonds payable, deferred income taxes and pension obligations.
Pitfalls
Too much debt. 'Nuff said.
Weapons
Figure out the company's leverage.

Leverage is the amount of liabilities compared to the company's net worth. It tells you if the company could pay all its bills if it had to liquidate today. To calculate, divide total long-term liabilities by the total tangible net worth (total stockholders' equity). A number of one or lower is comforting, although different industries have different leverage ratios.