Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation's (HKG:981) Stock Is Rallying But Financials Look Ambiguous: Will The Momentum Continue?

Semiconductor Manufacturing International's (HKG:981) stock is up by a considerable 58% over the past three months. However, we wonder if the company's inconsistent financials would have any adverse impact on the current share price momentum. Specifically, we decided to study Semiconductor Manufacturing International's ROE in this article.

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.

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How To Calculate Return On Equity?

Return on equity 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 Semiconductor Manufacturing International is:

2.9% = US$964m ÷ US$33b (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2025).

The 'return' refers to a company's earnings over the last year. So, this means that for every HK$1 of its shareholder's investments, the company generates a profit of HK$0.03.

View our latest analysis for Semiconductor Manufacturing International

Why Is ROE Important For Earnings Growth?

So far, we've learned that ROE is a measure of a company's profitability. Depending on how much of these profits the company reinvests or "retains", and how effectively it does so, we are then able to assess a company’s earnings growth potential. 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.

Semiconductor Manufacturing International's Earnings Growth And 2.9% ROE

It is quite clear that Semiconductor Manufacturing International's ROE is rather low. Not just that, even compared to the industry average of 4.7%, the company's ROE is entirely unremarkable. Given the circumstances, the significant decline in net income by 7.7% seen by Semiconductor Manufacturing International over the last five years is not surprising. We believe that there also might be other aspects that are negatively influencing the company's earnings prospects. For instance, the company has a very high payout ratio, or is faced with competitive pressures.

However, when we compared Semiconductor Manufacturing International's growth with the industry we found that while the company's earnings have been shrinking, the industry has seen an earnings growth of 3.2% in the same period. This is quite worrisome.

The basis for attaching value to a company is, to a great extent, tied to its earnings growth. 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. Is Semiconductor Manufacturing International fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.

Is Semiconductor Manufacturing International Using Its Retained Earnings Effectively?

Because Semiconductor Manufacturing International doesn't pay any regular dividends, we infer that it is retaining all of its profits, which is rather perplexing when you consider the fact that there is no earnings growth to show for it. It looks like there might be some other reasons to explain the lack in that respect. For example, the business could be in decline.

Summary

On the whole, we feel that the performance shown by Semiconductor Manufacturing International can be open to many interpretations. While the company does have a high rate of profit retention, its low rate of return is probably hampering its earnings growth. That being so, the latest industry analyst forecasts show that the analysts are expecting to see a huge improvement in the company's earnings growth rate. To know more about the company's future earnings growth forecasts take a look at this free report on analyst forecasts for the company to find out more.

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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.