Scott Technology (NZSE:SCT) has had a rough month with its share price down 4.6%. But if you pay close attention, you might find that its key financial indicators look quite decent, which could mean that the stock could potentially rise in the long-term given how markets usually reward more resilient long-term fundamentals. Particularly, we will be paying attention to Scott Technology’s ROE today.
Return on equity or ROE is a key measure used to assess how efficiently a company’s management is utilizing the company’s capital. In simpler terms, it measures the profitability of a company in relation to shareholder’s equity.
View our latest analysis for Scott Technology
How To Calculate Return On Equity?
The formula for return on equity is:
Return on Equity = Net Profit (from continuing operations) ÷ Shareholders’ Equity
So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Scott Technology is:
13% = NZ$13m ÷ NZ$100m (Based on the trailing twelve months to August 2022).
The ‘return’ is the income the business earned over the last year. Another way to think of that is that for every NZ$1 worth of equity, the company was able to earn NZ$0.13 in profit.
What Is The Relationship Between ROE And Earnings Growth?
So far, we’ve learned that ROE is a measure of a company’s profitability. Depending on how much of these profits the company reinvests or “retains”, and how effectively it does so, we are then able to assess a company’s earnings growth potential. Generally speaking, other things being equal, firms with a high return on equity and profit retention, have a higher growth rate than firms that don’t share these attributes.
Scott Technology’s Earnings Growth And 13% ROE
To begin with, Scott Technology seems to have a respectable ROE. Even when compared to the industry average of 13% the company’s ROE looks quite decent. As you might expect, the 15% net income decline reported by Scott Technology is a bit of a surprise. So, there might be some other aspects that could explain this. Such as, the company pays out a huge portion of its earnings as dividends, or is faced with competitive pressures.
That being said, we compared Scott Technology’s performance with the industry and were concerned when we found that while the company has shrunk its earnings, the industry has grown its earnings at a rate of 8.6% in the same period.
The basis for attaching value to a company is, to a great extent, tied to its earnings growth. It’s important for an investor to know whether the market has priced in the company’s expected earnings growth (or decline). Doing so will help them establish if the stock’s future looks promising or ominous. Is Scott Technology fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.
Is Scott Technology Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?
Scott Technology’s declining earnings is not surprising given how the company is spending most of its profits in paying dividends, judging by its three-year median payout ratio of 55% (or a retention ratio of 45%). With only very little left to reinvest into the business, growth in earnings is far from likely. To know the 2 risks we have identified for Scott Technology visit our risks dashboard for free.
Additionally, Scott Technology has paid dividends over a period of at least ten years, which means that the company’s management is determined to pay dividends even if it means little to no earnings growth.
Conclusion
In total, it does look like Scott Technology has some positive aspects to its business. However, while the company does have a high ROE, its earnings growth number is quite disappointing. This can be blamed on the fact that it reinvests only a small portion of its profits and pays out the rest as dividends. Up till now, we’ve only made a short study of the company’s growth data. So it may be worth checking this free detailed graph of Scott Technology’s past earnings, as well as revenue and cash flows to get a deeper insight into the company’s performance.
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.
Join A Paid User Research Session
You’ll receive a US$30 Amazon Gift card for 1 hour of your time while helping us build better investing tools for the individual investors like yourself. Sign up here