Has Wheaton Precious Metals Corp.'s (TSE:WPM) Impressive Stock Performance Got Anything to Do With Its Fundamentals?

Wheaton Precious Metals (TSE:WPM) has had a great run on the share market with its stock up by a significant 20% over the last three months. We wonder if and what role the company's financials play in that price change as a company's long-term fundamentals usually dictate market outcomes. Specifically, we decided to study Wheaton Precious Metals' ROE in this article.

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 Wheaton Precious Metals

How Is ROE Calculated?

The formula for ROE is:

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

So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Wheaton Precious Metals is:

8.3% = US$590m ÷ US$7.1b (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2024).

The 'return' is the profit over the last twelve months. So, this means that for every CA$1 of its shareholder's investments, the company generates a profit of CA$0.08.

Why Is ROE Important For Earnings Growth?

So far, we've learned that ROE is a measure of a company's profitability. 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. Generally speaking, other things being equal, firms with a high return on equity and profit retention, have a higher growth rate than firms that don’t share these attributes.

Wheaton Precious Metals' Earnings Growth And 8.3% ROE

When you first look at it, Wheaton Precious Metals' ROE doesn't look that attractive. However, its ROE is similar to the industry average of 8.4%, so we won't completely dismiss the company. Looking at Wheaton Precious Metals' exceptional 23% five-year net income growth in particular, we are definitely impressed. Given the slightly low ROE, it is likely that there could be some other aspects that are driving this 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.

As a next step, we compared Wheaton Precious Metals' net income growth with the industry and were disappointed to see that the company's growth is lower than the industry average growth of 29% in the same 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). Doing so will help them establish if the stock's future looks promising or ominous. Is Wheaton Precious Metals fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.

Is Wheaton Precious Metals Using Its Retained Earnings Effectively?

Wheaton Precious Metals has a three-year median payout ratio of 39% (where it is retaining 61% of its income) which is not too low or not too high. By the looks of it, the dividend is well covered and Wheaton Precious Metals is reinvesting its profits efficiently as evidenced by its exceptional growth which we discussed above.

Besides, Wheaton Precious Metals has been paying dividends for at least ten years or more. This shows that the company is committed to sharing profits with its shareholders. Based on the latest analysts' estimates, we found that the company's future payout ratio over the next three years is expected to hold steady at 43%. Accordingly, forecasts suggest that Wheaton Precious Metals' future ROE will be 8.5% which is again, similar to the current ROE.

Conclusion

On the whole, we do feel that Wheaton Precious Metals has some positive attributes. Specifically, its fairly high earnings growth number, which no doubt was backed by the company's high earnings retention. Still, the low ROE means that all that reinvestment is not reaping a lot of benefit to the investors. That being so, a study of the latest analyst forecasts show that the company is expected to see a slowdown in its future earnings growth. 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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com