Bonheur's (OB:BONHR) Strong Earnings Are Of Good Quality

Even though Bonheur ASA's (OB:BONHR) recent earnings release was robust, the market didn't seem to notice. We think that investors have missed some encouraging factors underlying the profit figures.

Check out our latest analysis for Bonheur

Examining Cashflow Against Bonheur'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. The accrual ratio subtracts the FCF from the profit for a given period, and divides the result by the average operating assets of the company over that time. 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 it's not a problem to have a positive accrual ratio, indicating a certain level of non-cash profits, a high accrual ratio is arguably a bad thing, because it indicates paper profits are not matched by cash flow. To quote a 2014 paper by Lewellen and Resutek, "firms with higher accruals tend to be less profitable in the future".

Bonheur has an accrual ratio of -0.13 for the year to March 2022. Therefore, its statutory earnings were quite a lot less than its free cashflow. To wit, it produced free cash flow of kr1.3b during the period, dwarfing its reported profit of kr85.5m. Given that Bonheur had negative free cash flow in the prior corresponding period, the trailing twelve month resul of kr1.3b would seem to be a step in the right direction. Having said that, there is more to the story. We can see that unusual items have impacted its statutory profit, and therefore the accrual ratio.

Note: we always recommend investors check balance sheet strength. Click here to be taken to our balance sheet analysis of Bonheur.

The Impact Of Unusual Items On Profit

Surprisingly, given Bonheur's accrual ratio implied strong cash conversion, its paper profit was actually boosted by kr239m in 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. If Bonheur doesn't see that contribution repeat, then all else being equal we'd expect its profit to drop over the current year.

Our Take On Bonheur's Profit Performance

In conclusion, Bonheur's accrual ratio suggests its statutory earnings are of good quality, but on the other hand the profits were boosted by unusual items. Based on these factors, it's hard to tell if Bonheur's profits are a reasonable reflection of its underlying profitability. So if you'd like to dive deeper into this stock, it's crucial to consider any risks it's facing. At Simply Wall St, we found 1 warning sign for Bonheur and we think they deserve your attention.

In this article we've looked at a number of factors that can impair the utility of profit numbers, as a guide to a business. 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. 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.