Is FORTEC Elektronik AG's (ETR:FEV) Latest Stock Performance A Reflection Of Its Financial Health?

Most readers would already be aware that FORTEC Elektronik's (ETR:FEV) stock increased significantly by 5.8% 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. Particularly, we will be paying attention to FORTEC Elektronik's ROE today.

ROE or return on equity is a useful tool to assess how effectively a company can generate returns on the investment it received from its shareholders. Put another way, it reveals the company's success at turning shareholder investments into profits.

View our latest analysis for FORTEC Elektronik

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 FORTEC Elektronik is:

10% = €4.4m ÷ €44m (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2020).

The 'return' is the profit over the last twelve months. One way to conceptualize this is that for each €1 of shareholders' capital it has, the company made €0.10 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. 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.

FORTEC Elektronik's Earnings Growth And 10% ROE

To start with, FORTEC Elektronik's ROE looks acceptable. On comparing with the average industry ROE of 7.6% the company's ROE looks pretty remarkable. This certainly adds some context to FORTEC Elektronik's decent 13% net income growth seen over the past five years.

Next, on comparing FORTEC Elektronik's net income growth with the industry, we found that the company's reported growth is similar to the industry average growth rate of 13% in the same period.

Earnings growth is a huge factor in stock valuation. What investors need to determine next is if the expected earnings growth, or the lack of it, is already built into the share price. Doing so will help them establish if the stock's future looks promising or ominous. Is FORTEC Elektronik fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.

Is FORTEC Elektronik Using Its Retained Earnings Effectively?

FORTEC Elektronik has a three-year median payout ratio of 41%, which implies that it retains the remaining 59% of its profits. This suggests that its dividend is well covered, and given the decent growth seen by the company, it looks like management is reinvesting its earnings efficiently.

Additionally, FORTEC Elektronik has paid dividends over a period of at least ten years which means that the company is pretty serious about sharing its profits with 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 46%. Therefore, the company's future ROE is also not expected to change by much with analysts predicting an ROE of 11%.

Conclusion

In total, we are pretty happy with FORTEC Elektronik's performance. Particularly, we like that the company is reinvesting heavily into its business, and at a high rate of return. Unsurprisingly, this has led to an impressive earnings growth. 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. 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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