Do Its Financials Have Any Role To Play In Driving Ship Healthcare Holdings, Inc.'s (TSE:3360) Stock Up Recently?

Ship Healthcare Holdings' (TSE:3360) stock is up by a considerable 5.4% over the past week. 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. Particularly, we will be paying attention to Ship Healthcare Holdings' ROE today.

Return on Equity or ROE is a test of how effectively a company is growing its value and managing investors’ money. Put another way, it reveals the company's success at turning shareholder investments into profits.

View our latest analysis for Ship Healthcare Holdings

How Is ROE Calculated?

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 Ship Healthcare Holdings is:

11% = JP¥15b ÷ JP¥142b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2024).

The 'return' is the profit over the last twelve months. So, this means that for every ¥1 of its shareholder's investments, the company generates a profit of ¥0.11.

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 Ship Healthcare Holdings' Earnings Growth And 11% ROE

To start with, Ship Healthcare Holdings' ROE looks acceptable. Further, the company's ROE is similar to the industry average of 11%. Despite the moderate return on equity, Ship Healthcare Holdings has posted a net income growth of 2.5% over the past five years. So, there could be some other factors at play that could be impacting the company's growth. For instance, 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 Ship Healthcare Holdings' reported growth was lower than the industry growth of 6.4% over the last few years, which is not something we like to see.

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. Doing so will help them establish if the stock's future looks promising or ominous. Has the market priced in the future outlook for 3360? You can find out in our latest intrinsic value infographic research report.

Is Ship Healthcare Holdings Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?

While Ship Healthcare Holdings has a decent three-year median payout ratio of 32% (or a retention ratio of 68%), it has seen very little growth in earnings. So there might be other factors at play here which could potentially be hampering growth. For example, the business has faced some headwinds.

Moreover, Ship Healthcare Holdings 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

In total, it does look like Ship Healthcare Holdings has some positive aspects to its business. 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. Having said that, looking at the current analyst estimates, we found that the company's earnings are expected to gain momentum. Are these analysts expectations based on the broad expectations for the industry, or on the company's fundamentals? Click here to be taken to our analyst's forecasts page 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.