Do Its Financials Have Any Role To Play In Driving Poppins Corporation's (TSE:7358) Stock Up Recently?

Most readers would already be aware that Poppins' (TSE:7358) stock increased significantly by 17% over the past three months. We wonder if and what role the company's financials play in that price change as a company's long-term fundamentals usually dictate market outcomes. Specifically, we decided to study Poppins' 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.

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How Do You 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 Poppins is:

13% = JP¥1.1b ÷ JP¥8.7b (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2025).

The 'return' is the amount earned after tax over the last twelve months. So, this means that for every ¥1 of its shareholder's investments, the company generates a profit of ¥0.13.

Check out our latest analysis for Poppins

What Has ROE Got To Do With Earnings Growth?

So far, we've learned that ROE is a measure of a company's profitability. 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. 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.

Poppins' Earnings Growth And 13% ROE

To start with, Poppins' ROE looks acceptable. And on comparing with the industry, we found that the the average industry ROE is similar at 13%. Given the circumstances, we can't help but wonder why Poppins saw little to no growth in the past five years. Based on this, we feel that there might be other reasons which haven't been discussed so far in this article that could be hampering the company's growth. Such as, the company pays out a huge portion of its earnings as dividends, or is faced with competitive pressures.

Next, on comparing with the industry net income growth, we found that the industry grew its earnings by 20% over the last few years.

The basis for attaching value to a company is, to a great extent, tied to its earnings growth. The investor should try to establish if the expected growth or decline in earnings, whichever the case may be, is priced in. By doing so, they will have an idea if the stock is headed into clear blue waters or if swampy waters await. If you're wondering about Poppins''s valuation, check out this gauge of its price-to-earnings ratio, as compared to its industry.

Is Poppins Using Its Retained Earnings Effectively?

In spite of a normal three-year median payout ratio of 47% (or a retention ratio of 53%), Poppins hasn't seen much growth in its earnings. So there could be some other explanation in that regard. For instance, the company's business may be deteriorating.

In addition, Poppins has been paying dividends over a period of four years suggesting that keeping up dividend payments is way more important to the management even if it comes at the cost of business growth.

Summary

On the whole, we do feel that Poppins has some positive attributes. 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. Until now, we have only just grazed the surface of the company's past performance by looking at the company's fundamentals. You can do your own research on Poppins and see how it has performed in the past by looking at this FREE detailed graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flows.

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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.