Cenit (KOSDAQ:037760) Is Growing Earnings But Are They A Good Guide?

Broadly speaking, profitable businesses are less risky than unprofitable ones. That said, the current statutory profit is not always a good guide to a company's underlying profitability. In this article, we'll look at how useful this year's statutory profit is, when analysing Cenit (KOSDAQ:037760).

While Cenit was able to generate revenue of ₩95.2b in the last twelve months, we think its profit result of ₩6.87b was more important. Even though its revenue is down over the last three years, its profit has actually increased, as you can see, below.

Check out our latest analysis for Cenit

Not all profits are equal, and we can learn more about the nature of a company's past profitability by diving deeper into the financial statements. This article will discuss how unusual items have impacted Cenit's most recent profit results. Note: we always recommend investors check balance sheet strength. Click here to be taken to our balance sheet analysis of Cenit.

The Impact Of Unusual Items On Profit

For anyone who wants to understand Cenit's profit beyond the statutory numbers, it's important to note that during the last twelve months statutory profit gained from ₩13b worth of unusual items. While it's always nice to have higher profit, a large contribution from unusual items sometimes dampens our enthusiasm. When we crunched the numbers on thousands of publicly listed companies, we found that a boost from unusual items in a given year is often not repeated the next year. And, after all, that's exactly what the accounting terminology implies. Cenit had a rather significant contribution from unusual items relative to its profit to September 2020. As a result, we can surmise that the unusual items are making its statutory profit significantly stronger than it would otherwise be.

Our Take On Cenit's Profit Performance

As previously mentioned, Cenit's large boost from unusual items won't be there indefinitely, so its statutory earnings are probably a poor guide to its underlying profitability. For this reason, we think that Cenit's statutory profits may be a bad guide to its underlying earnings power, and might give investors an overly positive impression of the company. The silver lining is that its EPS growth over the last year has been really wonderful, even if it's not a perfect measure. Of course, we've only just scratched the surface when it comes to analysing its earnings; one could also consider margins, forecast growth, and return on investment, among other factors. If you'd like to know more about Cenit as a business, it's important to be aware of any risks it's facing. Our analysis shows 5 warning signs for Cenit (2 are potentially serious!) and we strongly recommend you look at these before investing.

Today we've zoomed in on a single data point to better understand the nature of Cenit's profit. But there is always more to discover if you are capable of focussing your mind on minutiae. For example, many people consider a high return on equity as an indication of favorable business economics, while others like to 'follow the money' and search out stocks that insiders are buying. While it might take a little research on your behalf, you may find this free collection of companies boasting high return on equity, or this list of stocks that insiders are buying to be useful.

If you decide to trade Cenit, use the lowest-cost* platform that is rated #1 Overall by Barron’s, Interactive Brokers. Trade stocks, options, futures, forex, bonds and funds on 135 markets, all from a single integrated account. Promoted

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. 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.
^*Interactive Brokers Rated Lowest Cost Broker by StockBrokers.com Annual Online Review 2020

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.