It is hard to get excited after looking at Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings' (HKG:631) recent performance, when its stock has declined 25% over the past three months. But if you pay close attention, you might gather that its strong financials could mean that the stock could potentially see an increase in value in the long-term, given how markets usually reward companies with good financial health. In this article, we decided to focus on Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings' ROE.

Return on equity or ROE is an important factor to be considered by a shareholder because it tells them how effectively their capital is being reinvested. In simpler terms, it measures the profitability of a company in relation to shareholder's equity.

How Do You Calculate Return On Equity?

The formula for ROE is:

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

So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings is:

19% = CN¥2.1b ÷ CN¥11b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2023).

The 'return' is the yearly profit. One way to conceptualize this is that for each HK$1 of shareholders' capital it has, the company made HK$0.19 in profit.

What Has ROE Got To Do With Earnings Growth?

Thus far, we have learned that ROE measures how efficiently a company is generating its profits. Based on how much of its profits the company chooses to reinvest or "retain", we are then able to evaluate a company's future ability to generate profits. 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.

A Side By Side comparison of Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings' Earnings Growth And 19% ROE

To begin with, Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings seems to have a respectable ROE. On comparing with the average industry ROE of 6.9% the company's ROE looks pretty remarkable. This certainly adds some context to Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings' exceptional 23% net income growth seen over the past five years. We believe that there might also be other aspects that are positively influencing the company's earnings growth. For example, it is possible that the company's management has made some good strategic decisions, or that the company has a low payout ratio.

We then compared Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings' net income growth with the industry and we're pleased to see that the company's growth figure is higher when compared with the industry which has a growth rate of 7.7% in the same 5-year 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). This then helps them determine if the stock is placed for a bright or bleak future. Is Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.

Is Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings Using Its Retained Earnings Effectively?

The three-year median payout ratio for Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings is 31%, which is moderately low. The company is retaining the remaining 69%. So it seems that Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings is reinvesting efficiently in a way that it sees impressive growth in its earnings (discussed above) and pays a dividend that's well covered.

Additionally, Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings has paid dividends over a period of five years which means that the company is pretty serious about sharing its profits with shareholders.

Conclusion

On the whole, we feel that Sany Heavy Equipment International Holdings' performance has been quite good. Particularly, we like that the company is reinvesting heavily into its business, and at a high rate of return. Unsurprisingly, this has led to an impressive earnings growth. We also studied the latest analyst forecasts and found that the company's earnings growth is expected be similar to its current growth rate. To know more about the latest analysts predictions for the company, check out this visualization of analyst forecasts for the company.

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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.