Does Singapore Shipping's (SGX:S19) Statutory Profit Adequately Reflect Its Underlying Profit?

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. This article will consider whether Singapore Shipping's (SGX:S19) statutory profits are a good guide to its underlying earnings.

While Singapore Shipping was able to generate revenue of US$44.8m in the last twelve months, we think its profit result of US$10.4m was more important. As you can see in the chart below, it has grown its profits over the last three years, despite the fact its revenue has been steady.

View our latest analysis for Singapore Shipping

Of course, when it comes to statutory profit, the devil is often in the detail, and we can get a better sense for a company by diving deeper into the financial statements. Today, we'll discuss Singapore Shipping's free cashflow relative to its earnings, and consider what that tells us about the company. Note: we always recommend investors check balance sheet strength. Click here to be taken to our balance sheet analysis of Singapore Shipping.

Zooming In On Singapore Shipping's Earnings

As finance nerds would already know, the accrual ratio from cashflow is a key measure for assessing how well a company's free cash flow (FCF) matches its profit. To get the accrual ratio we first subtract FCF from profit for a period, and then divide that number by the average operating assets for the period. This ratio tells us how much of a company's profit is not backed by free cashflow.

Therefore, it's actually considered a good thing when a company has a negative accrual ratio, but a bad thing if its accrual ratio is positive. That is not intended to imply we should worry about a positive accrual ratio, but it's worth noting where the accrual ratio is rather high. Notably, there is some academic evidence that suggests that a high accrual ratio is a bad sign for near-term profits, generally speaking.

Singapore Shipping has an accrual ratio of -0.11 for the year to September 2020. That implies it has good cash conversion, and implies that its free cash flow solidly exceeded its profit last year. In fact, it had free cash flow of US$23m in the last year, which was a lot more than its statutory profit of US$10.4m. Singapore Shipping did see its free cash flow drop year on year, which is less than ideal, like a Simpson's episode without Groundskeeper Willie.

Our Take On Singapore Shipping's Profit Performance

Singapore Shipping's accrual ratio is solid, and indicates strong free cash flow, as we discussed, above. Based on this observation, we consider it likely that Singapore Shipping's statutory profit actually understates its earnings potential! And on top of that, its earnings per share have grown at 17% 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. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of Singapore Shipping.

Today we've zoomed in on a single data point to better understand the nature of Singapore Shipping'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.

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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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