OceanPact Serviços Marítimos' (BVMF:OPCT3) Shareholders Have More To Worry About Than Only Soft Earnings

A lackluster earnings announcement from OceanPact Serviços Marítimos S.A. (BVMF:OPCT3) last week didn't sink the stock price. Our analysis suggests that along with soft profit numbers, investors should be aware of some other underlying weaknesses in the numbers.

See our latest analysis for OceanPact Serviços Marítimos

How Do Unusual Items Influence Profit?

For anyone who wants to understand OceanPact Serviços Marítimos' profit beyond the statutory numbers, it's important to note that during the last twelve months statutory profit gained from R$95m worth of unusual items. While we like to see profit increases, we tend to be a little more cautious when unusual items have made a big contribution. When we crunched the numbers on thousands of publicly listed companies, we found that a boost from unusual items in a given year is often not repeated the next year. And, after all, that's exactly what the accounting terminology implies. OceanPact Serviços Marítimos had a rather significant contribution from unusual items relative to its profit to September 2024. As a result, we can surmise that the unusual items are making its statutory profit significantly stronger than it would otherwise be.

That might leave you wondering what analysts are forecasting in terms of future profitability. Luckily, you can click here to see an interactive graph depicting future profitability, based on their estimates.

Our Take On OceanPact Serviços Marítimos' Profit Performance

As we discussed above, we think the significant positive unusual item makes OceanPact Serviços Marítimos' earnings a poor guide to its underlying profitability. For this reason, we think that OceanPact Serviços Marítimos' statutory profits may be a bad guide to its underlying earnings power, and might give investors an overly positive impression of the company. In further bad news, its earnings per share decreased in the last year. Of course, we've only just scratched the surface when it comes to analysing its earnings; one could also consider margins, forecast growth, and return on investment, among other factors. If you want to do dive deeper into OceanPact Serviços Marítimos, you'd also look into what risks it is currently facing. To help with this, we've discovered 3 warning signs (1 doesn't sit too well with us!) that you ought to be aware of before buying any shares in OceanPact Serviços Marítimos.

This note has only looked at a single factor that sheds light on the nature of OceanPact Serviços Marítimos' profit. But there is always more to discover if you are capable of focussing your mind on minutiae. For example, many people consider a high return on equity as an indication of favorable business economics, while others like to 'follow the money' and search out stocks that insiders are buying. So you may wish to see this free collection of companies boasting high return on equity, or this list of stocks with high insider ownership.

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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.