The Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation, Limited's (NSE:BBTC) Fundamentals Look Pretty Strong: Could The Market Be Wrong About The Stock?

It is hard to get excited after looking at Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation's (NSE:BBTC) recent performance, when its stock has declined 15% over the past three months. However, the company's fundamentals look pretty decent, and long-term financials are usually aligned with future market price movements. Specifically, we decided to study Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation'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. In simpler terms, it measures the profitability of a company in relation to shareholder's equity.

See our latest analysis for Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation

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 Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation is:

26% = ₹17b ÷ ₹67b (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2024).

The 'return' is the profit over the last twelve months. That means that for every ₹1 worth of shareholders' equity, the company generated ₹0.26 in profit.

What Is The Relationship Between ROE And Earnings Growth?

So far, we've learned that ROE is a measure of a company's profitability. 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. Assuming all else is equal, companies that have both a higher return on equity and higher profit retention are usually the ones that have a higher growth rate when compared to companies that don't have the same features.

A Side By Side comparison of Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation's Earnings Growth And 26% ROE

To begin with, Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation seems to have a respectable ROE. Especially when compared to the industry average of 11% the company's ROE looks pretty impressive. For this reason, Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation's five year net income decline of 62% raises the question as to why the high ROE didn't translate into earnings growth. We reckon that there could be some other factors at play here that are preventing the company's growth. These include low earnings retention or poor allocation of capital.

However, when we compared Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation's growth with the industry we found that while the company's earnings have been shrinking, the industry has seen an earnings growth of 16% 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. It’s important for an investor to know whether the market has priced in the company's expected earnings growth (or decline). Doing so will help them establish if the stock's future looks promising or ominous. What is BBTC worth today? The intrinsic value infographic in our free research report helps visualize whether BBTC is currently mispriced by the market.

Is Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?

Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation's low three-year median payout ratio of 1.7% (or a retention ratio of 98%) over the last three years should mean that the company is retaining most of its earnings to fuel its growth but the company's earnings have actually shrunk. The low payout should mean that the company is retaining most of its earnings and consequently, should see some growth. It looks like there might be some other reasons to explain the lack in that respect. For example, the business could be in decline.

Moreover, Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation has been paying dividends for at least ten years or more suggesting that management must have perceived that the shareholders prefer dividends over earnings growth.

Conclusion

Overall, we feel that Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation certainly does have some positive factors to consider. Yet, the low earnings growth is a bit concerning, especially given that the company has a high rate of return and is reinvesting ma huge portion of its profits. By the looks of it, there could be some other factors, not necessarily in control of the business, that's preventing growth. While we won't completely dismiss the company, what we would do, is try to ascertain how risky the business is to make a more informed decision around the company. You can see the 1 risk we have identified for Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation by visiting our risks dashboard for free on our platform here.

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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.