FoundPac Group Berhad's (KLSE:FPGROUP) Soft Earnings Don't Show The Whole Picture

The market for FoundPac Group Berhad's (KLSE:FPGROUP) shares didn't move much after it posted weak earnings recently. Our analysis suggests that while the profits are soft, the foundations of the business are strong.

Check out our latest analysis for FoundPac Group Berhad

Zooming In On FoundPac Group Berhad's Earnings

One key financial ratio used to measure how well a company converts its profit to free cash flow (FCF) is the accrual ratio. In plain english, this ratio subtracts FCF from net profit, and divides that number by the company's average operating assets over that period. You could think of the accrual ratio from cashflow as the 'non-FCF profit ratio'.

As a result, a negative accrual ratio is a positive for the company, and a positive accrual ratio is a negative. While having an accrual ratio above zero is of little concern, we do think it's worth noting when a company has a relatively high accrual ratio. To quote a 2014 paper by Lewellen and Resutek, "firms with higher accruals tend to be less profitable in the future".

Over the twelve months to March 2021, FoundPac Group Berhad recorded an accrual ratio of -0.16. That implies it has very good cash conversion, and that its earnings in the last year actually significantly understate its free cash flow. In fact, it had free cash flow of RM20m in the last year, which was a lot more than its statutory profit of RM12.6m. FoundPac Group Berhad shareholders are no doubt pleased that free cash flow improved over the last twelve months.

That might leave you wondering what analysts are forecasting in terms of future profitability. Luckily, you can click here to see an interactive graph depicting future profitability, based on their estimates.

Our Take On FoundPac Group Berhad's Profit Performance

Happily for shareholders, FoundPac Group Berhad produced plenty of free cash flow to back up its statutory profit numbers. Because of this, we think FoundPac Group Berhad's underlying earnings potential is as good as, or possibly even better, than the statutory profit makes it seem! And on top of that, its earnings per share have grown at 40% per year over the last three years. The goal of this article has been to assess how well we can rely on the statutory earnings to reflect the company's potential, but there is plenty more to consider. So if you'd like to dive deeper into this stock, it's crucial to consider any risks it's facing. You'd be interested to know, that we found 2 warning signs for FoundPac Group Berhad and you'll want to know about these bad boys.

Today we've zoomed in on a single data point to better understand the nature of FoundPac Group Berhad's profit. But there is always more to discover if you are capable of focussing your mind on minutiae. Some people consider a high return on equity to be a good sign of a quality business. So you may wish to see this free collection of companies boasting high return on equity, or this list of stocks that insiders are buying.

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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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