NuVista Energy Ltd.'s (TSE:NVA) Fundamentals Look Pretty Strong: Could The Market Be Wrong About The Stock?

With its stock down 10% over the past three months, it is easy to disregard NuVista Energy (TSE:NVA). However, stock prices are usually driven by a company’s financial performance over the long term, which in this case looks quite promising. Specifically, we decided to study NuVista Energy’s ROE in this article.

ROE or return on equity is a useful tool to assess how effectively a company can generate returns on the investment it received from its shareholders. In short, ROE shows the profit each dollar generates with respect to its shareholder investments.

Check out our latest analysis for NuVista Energy

How Is ROE Calculated?

ROE can be calculated by using the formula:

Return on Equity = Net Profit (from continuing operations) ÷ Shareholders’ Equity

So, based on the above formula, the ROE for NuVista Energy is:

31% = CA$585m ÷ CA$1.9b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2022).

The ‘return’ is the profit over the last twelve months. Another way to think of that is that for every CA$1 worth of equity, the company was able to earn CA$0.31 in profit.

Why Is ROE Important For Earnings Growth?

So far, we’ve learned that ROE is a measure of a company’s profitability. We now need to evaluate how much profit the company reinvests or “retains” for future growth which then gives us an idea about the growth potential of the company. Assuming all else is equal, companies that have both a higher return on equity and higher profit retention are usually the ones that have a higher growth rate when compared to companies that don’t have the same features.

NuVista Energy’s Earnings Growth And 31% ROE

Firstly, we acknowledge that NuVista Energy has a significantly high ROE. Second, a comparison with the average ROE reported by the industry of 26% also doesn’t go unnoticed by us. As a result, NuVista Energy’s exceptional 27% net income growth seen over the past five years, doesn’t come as a surprise.

We then compared NuVista Energy’s net income growth with the industry and found that the company’s growth figure is lower than the average industry growth rate of 34% in the same period, which is a bit concerning.

past-earnings-growth

Earnings growth is a huge factor in stock valuation. The investor should try to establish if the expected growth or decline in earnings, whichever the case may be, is priced in. By doing so, they will have an idea if the stock is headed into clear blue waters or if swampy waters await. One good indicator of expected earnings growth is the P/E ratio which determines the price the market is willing to pay for a stock based on its earnings prospects. So, you may want to check if NuVista Energy is trading on a high P/E or a low P/E, relative to its industry.

Is NuVista Energy Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?

NuVista Energy doesn’t pay any dividend currently which essentially means that it has been reinvesting all of its profits into the business. This definitely contributes to the high earnings growth number that we discussed above.

Summary

Overall, we are quite pleased with NuVista Energy’s performance. In particular, it’s great to see that the company is investing heavily into its business and along with a high rate of return, that has resulted in a respectable growth in its earnings. Having said that, on studying current analyst estimates, we were concerned to see that while the company has grown its earnings in the past, analysts expect its earnings to shrink in the future. To know more about the latest analysts predictions for the company, check out this visualization of analyst forecasts for the company.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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