Is Koh Young Technology Inc.'s (KOSDAQ:098460) Stock Price Struggling As A Result Of Its Mixed Financials?

With its stock down 16% over the past three months, it is easy to disregard Koh Young Technology (KOSDAQ:098460). It seems that the market might have completely ignored the positive aspects of the company's fundamentals and decided to weigh-in more on the negative aspects. Stock prices are usually driven by a company’s financial performance over the long term, and therefore we decided to pay more attention to the company's financial performance. Particularly, we will be paying attention to Koh Young Technology's ROE today.

Return on equity or ROE is an important factor to be considered by a shareholder because it tells them how effectively their capital is being reinvested. In short, ROE shows the profit each dollar generates with respect to its shareholder investments.

Check out our latest analysis for Koh Young Technology

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 Koh Young Technology is:

3.8% = ₩12b ÷ ₩310b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2024).

The 'return' is the amount earned after tax over the last twelve months. That means that for every ₩1 worth of shareholders' equity, the company generated ₩0.04 in profit.

What Is The Relationship Between ROE And Earnings Growth?

Thus far, we have learned that ROE measures how efficiently a company is generating its profits. 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 Koh Young Technology's Earnings Growth And 3.8% ROE

It is hard to argue that Koh Young Technology's ROE is much good in and of itself. Not just that, even compared to the industry average of 5.8%, the company's ROE is entirely unremarkable. For this reason, Koh Young Technology's five year net income decline of 2.8% is not surprising given its lower ROE. We believe that there also might be other aspects that are negatively influencing the company's earnings prospects. For example, the business has allocated capital poorly, or that the company has a very high payout ratio.

However, when we compared Koh Young Technology's growth with the industry we found that while the company's earnings have been shrinking, the industry has seen an earnings growth of 9.3% in the same period. This is quite worrisome.

Earnings growth is an important metric to consider when valuing a stock. It’s important for an investor to know whether the market has priced in the company's expected earnings growth (or decline). This then helps them determine if the stock is placed for a bright or bleak future. Is Koh Young Technology fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.

Is Koh Young Technology Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?

Koh Young Technology's low three-year median payout ratio of 25% (implying that it retains the remaining 75% of its profits) comes as a surprise when you pair it with the shrinking earnings. The low payout should mean that the company is retaining most of its earnings and consequently, should see some growth. So there could be some other explanations in that regard. For example, the company's business may be deteriorating.

Moreover, Koh Young Technology has been paying dividends for eight years, which is a considerable amount of time, suggesting that management must have perceived that the shareholders prefer consistent dividends even though earnings have been shrinking. Based on the latest analysts' estimates, we found that the company's future payout ratio over the next three years is expected to hold steady at 29%. However, Koh Young Technology's ROE is predicted to rise to 9.6% despite there being no anticipated change in its payout ratio.

Conclusion

In total, we're a bit ambivalent about Koh Young Technology's performance. While the company does have a high rate of profit retention, its low rate of return is probably hampering its earnings growth. Having said that, looking at current analyst estimates, we found that the company's earnings growth rate is expected to see a huge improvement. 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.