Most readers would already be aware that PhiChem's (SZSE:300398) stock increased significantly by 24% over the past month. Given the company's impressive performance, we decided to study its financial indicators more closely as a company's financial health over the long-term usually dictates market outcomes. In this article, we decided to focus on PhiChem's ROE.

Return on Equity or ROE is a test of how effectively a company is growing its value and managing investors' money. In simpler terms, it measures the profitability of a company in relation to shareholder's equity.

Check out our latest analysis for PhiChem

How Is ROE Calculated?

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 PhiChem is:

8.7% = CN¥349m ÷ CN¥4.0b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2023).

The 'return' is the amount earned after tax over the last twelve months. Another way to think of that is that for every CN¥1 worth of equity, the company was able to earn CN¥0.09 in profit.

What Is The Relationship Between ROE And Earnings Growth?

Thus far, we have learned that ROE measures how efficiently a company is generating its profits. 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. 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.

PhiChem's Earnings Growth And 8.7% ROE

At first glance, PhiChem's ROE doesn't look very promising. However, the fact that the its ROE is quite higher to the industry average of 6.7% doesn't go unnoticed by us. This certainly adds some context to PhiChem's moderate 11% net income growth seen over the past five years. Bear in mind, the company does have a moderately low ROE. It is just that the industry ROE is lower. So there might well be other reasons for the earnings to grow. For example, it is possible that the broader industry is going through a high growth phase, or that the company has a low payout ratio.

Next, on comparing PhiChem's net income growth with the industry, we found that the company's reported growth is similar to the industry average growth rate of 12% over the last few years.

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. This then helps them determine if the stock is placed for a bright or bleak future. Is PhiChem fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.

Is PhiChem Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?

In PhiChem's case, its respectable earnings growth can probably be explained by its low three-year median payout ratio of 11% (or a retention ratio of 89%), which suggests that the company is investing most of its profits to grow its business.

Moreover, PhiChem is determined to keep sharing its profits with shareholders which we infer from its long history of eight years of paying a dividend. Looking at the current analyst consensus data, we can see that the company's future payout ratio is expected to rise to 20% over the next three years. However, PhiChem's future ROE is expected to rise to 12% despite the expected increase in the company's payout ratio. We infer that there could be other factors that could be driving the anticipated growth in the company's ROE.

Summary

Overall, we are quite pleased with PhiChem's performance. Particularly, we like that the company is reinvesting heavily into its business at a moderate rate of return. Unsurprisingly, this has led to an impressive earnings growth. That being so, the latest analyst forecasts show that the company will continue to see an expansion in its earnings. Are these analysts expectations based on the broad expectations for the industry, or on the company's fundamentals? Click here to be taken to our analyst's forecasts page 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.