Are Meggitt's (LON:MGGT) Statutory Earnings A Good Reflection Of Its Earnings Potential?

As a general rule, we think profitable companies are less risky than companies that lose money. Having said that, sometimes statutory profit levels are not a good guide to ongoing profitability, because some short term one-off factor has impacted profit levels. In this article, we'll look at how useful this year's statutory profit is, when analysing Meggitt (LON:MGGT).

While Meggitt was able to generate revenue of UK£2.20b in the last twelve months, we think its profit result of UK£145.2m was more important. Happily, it has grown both its profit and revenue over the last three years (though we note its profit is down over the last year).

View our latest analysis for Meggitt

Of course, it is only sensible to look beyond the statutory profits and question how well those numbers represent the sustainable earnings power of the business. This article will focus on the impact unusual items have had on Meggitt's statutory earnings. 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.

The Impact Of Unusual Items On Profit

For anyone who wants to understand Meggitt's profit beyond the statutory numbers, it's important to note that during the last twelve months statutory profit was reduced by UK£40m due to unusual items. It's never great to see unusual items costing the company profits, but on the upside, things might improve sooner rather than later. When we analysed the vast majority of listed companies worldwide, we found that significant unusual items are often not repeated. And that's hardly a surprise given these line items are considered unusual. If Meggitt doesn't see those unusual expenses repeat, then all else being equal we'd expect its profit to increase over the coming year.

Our Take On Meggitt's Profit Performance

Unusual items (expenses) detracted from Meggitt's earnings over the last year, but we might see an improvement next year. Because of this, we think Meggitt's earnings potential is at least as good as it seems, and maybe even better! And the EPS is up 22% annually, over the last three years. At the end of the day, it's essential to consider more than just the factors above, if you want to understand the company properly. While it's really important to consider how well a company's statutory earnings represent its true earnings power, it's also worth taking a look at what analysts are forecasting for the future. Luckily, you can check out what analysts are forecsting by clicking here.

Today we've zoomed in on a single data point to better understand the nature of Meggitt'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. So you may wish to see this free collection of companies boasting high return on equity, or this list of stocks that insiders are buying.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.