Welspun Investments and Commercials Limited's (NSE:WELINV) Stock's On An Uptrend: Are Strong Financials Guiding The Market?

Most readers would already be aware that Welspun Investments and Commercials' (NSE:WELINV) stock increased significantly by 17% over the past three months. 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 Welspun Investments and Commercials' ROE.

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 Welspun Investments and Commercials

How Do You 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 Welspun Investments and Commercials is:

6.9% = ₹73m ÷ ₹1.0b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2020).

The 'return' is the amount earned after tax over the last twelve months. So, this means that for every ₹1 of its shareholder's investments, the company generates a profit of ₹0.07.

What Has ROE Got To Do With Earnings Growth?

We have already established that ROE serves as an efficient profit-generating gauge for a company's future earnings. 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.

Welspun Investments and Commercials' Earnings Growth And 6.9% ROE

As you can see, Welspun Investments and Commercials' ROE looks pretty weak. However, the fact that it is higher than the industry average of 4.1% makes us a bit more interested. Even more so, after seeing Welspun Investments and Commercials' exceptional 78% net income growth over the past five years. Bear in mind, the company does have a low ROE. It is just that the industry ROE is lower. Therefore, the growth in earnings could also be the result of other factors. For instance, the company has a low payout ratio or is being managed efficiently

As a next step, we compared Welspun Investments and Commercials' net income growth with the industry, and pleasingly, we found that the growth seen by the company is higher than the average industry growth of 23%.

Earnings growth is an important metric to consider when valuing a stock. 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. 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 Welspun Investments and Commercials is trading on a high P/E or a low P/E, relative to its industry.

Is Welspun Investments and Commercials Using Its Retained Earnings Effectively?

Summary

Overall, we are quite pleased with Welspun Investments and Commercials' performance. In particular, it's great to see that the company has seen significant growth in its earnings backed by a respectable ROE and a high reinvestment rate. If the company continues to grow its earnings the way it has, that could have a positive impact on its share price given how earnings per share influence long-term share prices. Remember, the price of a stock is also dependent on the perceived risk. Therefore investors must keep themselves informed about the risks involved before investing in any company. Our risks dashboard would have the 2 risks we have identified for Welspun Investments and Commercials.

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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.
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