Yahoo Finance Can BlueScope Steel Limited (ASX:BSL) Performance Keep Up Given Its Mixed Bag Of Fundamentals?
BlueScope Steel's (ASX:BSL) stock up by 7.7% over the past three months. Given that the stock prices usually follow long-term business performance, we wonder if the company's mixed financials could have any adverse effect on its current price price movement Particularly, we will be paying attention to BlueScope Steel's ROE today.
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.
View our latest analysis for BlueScope Steel
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 BlueScope Steel is:
4.1% = AU$295m ÷ AU$7.1b (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2020).
The 'return' refers to a company's earnings over the last year. So, this means that for every A$1 of its shareholder's investments, the company generates a profit of A$0.04.
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.
A Side By Side comparison of BlueScope Steel's Earnings Growth And 4.1% ROE
At first glance, BlueScope Steel's ROE doesn't look very promising. A quick further study shows that the company's ROE doesn't compare favorably to the industry average of 15% either. Therefore, BlueScope Steel's flat earnings over the past five years can possibly be explained by the low ROE amongst other factors.
Next, on comparing with the industry net income growth, we found that the industry grew its earnings by30% in the same period.
Earnings growth is an important metric to consider when valuing a stock. What investors need to determine next is if the expected earnings growth, or the lack of it, is already built into the share price. This then helps them determine if the stock is placed for a bright or bleak future. What is BSL worth today? The intrinsic value infographic in our free research report helps visualize whether BSL is currently mispriced by the market.
Is BlueScope Steel Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?
BlueScope Steel's low three-year median payout ratio of 7.6% (implying that the company keeps92% of its income) should mean that the company is retaining most of its earnings to fuel its growth and this should be reflected in its growth number, but that's not the case.
Additionally, BlueScope Steel 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. Our latest analyst data shows that the future payout ratio of the company is expected to rise to 13% over the next three years. Regardless, the future ROE for BlueScope Steel is speculated to rise to 8.3% despite the anticipated increase in the payout ratio. There could probably be other factors that could be driving the future growth in the ROE.
Conclusion
On the whole, we feel that the performance shown by BlueScope Steel can be open to many interpretations. While the company does have a high rate of profit retention, its low rate of return is probably hampering its earnings growth. In addition, on studying the latest analyst forecasts, we found that the company's earnings are expected to continue to shrink. To know more about the company's future earnings growth forecasts take a look at this free report on analyst forecasts for the company to find out more.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
