Declining Stock and Solid Fundamentals: Is The Market Wrong About Capgemini SE (EPA:CAP)?

Capgemini (EPA:CAP) has had a rough three months with its share price down 6.2%. However, a closer look at its sound financials might cause you to think again. Given that fundamentals usually drive long-term market outcomes, the company is worth looking at. Particularly, we will be paying attention to Capgemini's ROE today.

Return on Equity or ROE is a test of how effectively a company is growing its value and managing investors’ money. Simply put, it is used to assess the profitability of a company in relation to its equity capital.

See our latest analysis for Capgemini

How To Calculate Return On Equity?

ROE can be calculated by using the formula:

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

So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Capgemini is:

16% = €1.6b ÷ €9.7b (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2022).

The 'return' is the yearly profit. One way to conceptualize this is that for each €1 of shareholders' capital it has, the company made €0.16 in profit.

What Has ROE Got To Do With Earnings Growth?

Thus far, we have learned that ROE measures how efficiently a company is generating its profits. Based on how much of its profits the company chooses to reinvest or "retain", we are then able to evaluate a company's future ability to generate profits. Assuming everything else remains unchanged, the higher the ROE and profit retention, the higher the growth rate of a company compared to companies that don't necessarily bear these characteristics.

Capgemini's Earnings Growth And 16% ROE

At first glance, Capgemini seems to have a decent ROE. Even when compared to the industry average of 15% the company's ROE looks quite decent. Consequently, this likely laid the ground for the decent growth of 15% seen over the past five years by Capgemini.

As a next step, we compared Capgemini's net income growth with the industry and found that the company has a similar growth figure when compared with the industry average growth rate of 14% in the same period.

Earnings growth is an important metric to consider when valuing a stock. What investors need to determine next is if the expected earnings growth, or the lack of it, is already built into the share price. This then helps them determine if the stock is placed for a bright or bleak future. Has the market priced in the future outlook for CAP? You can find out in our latest intrinsic value infographic research report.

Is Capgemini Efficiently Re-investing Its Profits?

Capgemini has a three-year median payout ratio of 29%, which implies that it retains the remaining 71% 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.

Besides, Capgemini 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 30%. Therefore, the company's future ROE is also not expected to change by much with analysts predicting an ROE of 18%.

Summary

In total, we are pretty happy with Capgemini's performance. In particular, it's great to see that the company is investing heavily into its business and along with a high rate of return, that has resulted in a sizeable growth in its earnings. 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. To know more about the latest analysts predictions for the company, check out this visualization of analyst forecasts 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.