Will Weakness in Aplex Technology Inc.'s (GTSM:6570) Stock Prove Temporary Given Strong Fundamentals?

It is hard to get excited after looking at Aplex Technology's (GTSM:6570) recent performance, when its stock has declined 7.9% over the past three months. But if you pay close attention, you might gather that its strong financials could mean that the stock could potentially see an increase in value in the long-term, given how markets usually reward companies with good financial health. Specifically, we decided to study Aplex Technology's ROE in this article.

Return on equity or ROE is a key measure used to assess how efficiently a company's management is utilizing the company's capital. In other words, it is a profitability ratio which measures the rate of return on the capital provided by the company's shareholders.

See our latest analysis for Aplex Technology

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 Aplex Technology is:

11% = NT$54m ÷ NT$481m (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2020).

The 'return' is the profit over the last twelve months. That means that for every NT$1 worth of shareholders' equity, the company generated NT$0.11 in profit.

What Has ROE Got To Do With Earnings Growth?

So far, we've learned that ROE is a measure of a company's profitability. Based on how much of its profits the company chooses to reinvest or "retain", we are then able to evaluate a company's future ability to generate profits. Generally speaking, other things being equal, firms with a high return on equity and profit retention, have a higher growth rate than firms that don’t share these attributes.

A Side By Side comparison of Aplex Technology's Earnings Growth And 11% ROE

To start with, Aplex Technology's ROE looks acceptable. And on comparing with the industry, we found that the the average industry ROE is similar at 11%. This certainly adds some context to Aplex Technology's moderate 14% net income growth seen over the past five years.

Next, on comparing with the industry net income growth, we found that Aplex Technology's growth is quite high when compared to the industry average growth of 6.7% in the same period, which is great to see.

Earnings growth is a huge factor in stock valuation. 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. Is Aplex Technology fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.

Is Aplex Technology Efficiently Re-investing Its Profits?

While Aplex Technology has a three-year median payout ratio of 70% (which means it retains 30% of profits), the company has still seen a fair bit of earnings growth in the past, meaning that its high payout ratio hasn't hampered its ability to grow.

Moreover, Aplex Technology is determined to keep sharing its profits with shareholders which we infer from its long history of four years of paying a dividend.

Summary

In total, we are pretty happy with Aplex Technology's performance. We are particularly impressed by the considerable earnings growth posted by the company, which was likely backed by its high ROE. While the company is paying out most of its earnings as dividends, it has been able to grow its earnings in spite of it, so that's probably a good sign. So far, we've only made a quick discussion around the company's earnings growth. You can do your own research on Aplex Technology and see how it has performed in the past by looking at this FREE detailed graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flows.

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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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