Miliboo Société anonyme's (EPA:ALMLB) Robust Earnings Are Supported By Other Strong Factors

Miliboo Société anonyme (EPA:ALMLB) just reported healthy earnings but the stock price didn't move much. Investors are probably missing some underlying factors which are encouraging for the future of the company.

Check out our latest analysis for Miliboo Société anonyme

Examining Cashflow Against Miliboo Société anonyme's Earnings

Many investors haven't heard of the accrual ratio from cashflow, but it is actually a useful measure of how well a company's profit is backed up by free cash flow (FCF) during a given period. To get the accrual ratio we first subtract FCF from profit for a period, and then divide that number by the average operating assets for the period. You could think of the accrual ratio from cashflow as the 'non-FCF profit ratio'.

That means a negative accrual ratio is a good thing, because it shows that the company is bringing in more free cash flow than its profit would suggest. While it's not a problem to have a positive accrual ratio, indicating a certain level of non-cash profits, a high accrual ratio is arguably a bad thing, because it indicates paper profits are not matched by cash flow. Notably, there is some academic evidence that suggests that a high accrual ratio is a bad sign for near-term profits, generally speaking.

Over the twelve months to April 2021, Miliboo Société anonyme recorded an accrual ratio of -2.00. Therefore, its statutory earnings were very significantly less than its free cashflow. To wit, it produced free cash flow of €4.9m during the period, dwarfing its reported profit of €1.86m. Notably, Miliboo Société anonyme had negative free cash flow last year, so the €4.9m it produced this year was a welcome improvement.

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 Miliboo Société anonyme's Profit Performance

As we discussed above, Miliboo Société anonyme's accrual ratio indicates strong conversion of profit to free cash flow, which is a positive for the company. Based on this observation, we consider it possible that Miliboo Société anonyme's statutory profit actually understates its earnings potential! And one can definitely find a positive in the fact that it made a profit this year, despite losing money last year. The goal of this article has been to assess how well we can rely on the statutory earnings to reflect the company's potential, but there is plenty more to consider. If you want to do dive deeper into Miliboo Société anonyme, you'd also look into what risks it is currently facing. You'd be interested to know, that we found 4 warning signs for Miliboo Société anonyme and you'll want to know about these.

Today we've zoomed in on a single data point to better understand the nature of Miliboo Société anonyme's profit. But there are plenty of other ways to inform your opinion of a company. Some people consider a high return on equity to be a good sign of a quality business. While it might take a little research on your behalf, you may find this free collection of companies boasting high return on equity, or this list of stocks that insiders are buying to be useful.

If you’re looking to trade Miliboo Société anonyme, open an account with the lowest-cost* platform trusted by professionals, Interactive Brokers. Their clients from over 200 countries and territories trade stocks, options, futures, forex, bonds and funds worldwide from a single integrated account. Promoted

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.
^*Interactive Brokers Rated Lowest Cost Broker by StockBrokers.com Annual Online Review 2020

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