Focus Dynamics Group Berhad's (KLSE:FOCUS) Fundamentals Look Pretty Strong: Could The Market Be Wrong About The Stock?

It is hard to get excited after looking at Focus Dynamics Group Berhad's (KLSE:FOCUS) recent performance, when its stock has declined 28% 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. In this article, we decided to focus on Focus Dynamics Group Berhad's ROE.

Return on equity or ROE is a key measure used to assess how efficiently a company's management is utilizing the company's capital. Put another way, it reveals the company's success at turning shareholder investments into profits.

View our latest analysis for Focus Dynamics Group Berhad

How Is ROE Calculated?

ROE 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 Focus Dynamics Group Berhad is:

8.4% = RM4.0m ÷ RM48m (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2020).

The 'return' is the yearly profit. One way to conceptualize this is that for each MYR1 of shareholders' capital it has, the company made MYR0.08 in profit.

What Is The Relationship Between ROE And Earnings Growth?

We have already established that ROE serves as an efficient profit-generating gauge for a company's future earnings. 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 everything else remains unchanged, the higher the ROE and profit retention, the higher the growth rate of a company compared to companies that don't necessarily bear these characteristics.

Focus Dynamics Group Berhad's Earnings Growth And 8.4% ROE

At first glance, Focus Dynamics Group Berhad's ROE doesn't look very promising. However, its ROE is similar to the industry average of 8.9%, so we won't completely dismiss the company. Looking at Focus Dynamics Group Berhad's exceptional 54% five-year net income growth in particular, we are definitely impressed. Considering the moderately low ROE, it is quite possible that there might be some other aspects that are positively influencing the company's earnings growth. For example, it is possible that the company's management has made some good strategic decisions, or that the company has a low payout ratio.

As a next step, we compared Focus Dynamics Group Berhad's net income growth with the industry, and pleasingly, we found that the growth seen by the company is higher than the average industry growth of 6.4%.

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. Doing so will help them establish if the stock's future looks promising or ominous. If you're wondering about Focus Dynamics Group Berhad's's valuation, check out this gauge of its price-to-earnings ratio, as compared to its industry.

Is Focus Dynamics Group Berhad Using Its Retained Earnings Effectively?

Summary

In total, it does look like Focus Dynamics Group Berhad has some positive aspects to its business. Despite its low rate of return, the fact that the company reinvests a very high portion of its profits into its business, no doubt contributed to its high earnings 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. Our risks dashboard would have the 2 risks we have identified for Focus Dynamics Group Berhad.

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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.
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