Is Monolithic Power Systems, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:MPWR) Latest Stock Performance A Reflection Of Its Financial Health?

Most readers would already be aware that Monolithic Power Systems' (NASDAQ:MPWR) stock increased significantly by 16% over the past three months. Given that the market rewards strong financials in the long-term, we wonder if that is the case in this instance. In this article, we decided to focus on Monolithic Power Systems' ROE.

ROE or return on equity is a useful tool to assess how effectively a company can generate returns on the investment it received from its shareholders. In simpler terms, it measures the profitability of a company in relation to shareholder's equity.

See our latest analysis for Monolithic Power Systems

How Is ROE Calculated?

The formula for return on equity is:

Return on Equity = Net Profit (from continuing operations) ÷ Shareholders' Equity

So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Monolithic Power Systems is:

17% = US$154m ÷ US$915m (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2020).

The 'return' refers to a company's earnings over the last year. That means that for every $1 worth of shareholders' equity, the company generated $0.17 in profit.

What Has ROE Got To Do With Earnings Growth?

We have already established that ROE serves as an efficient profit-generating gauge for a company's future earnings. 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. 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.

A Side By Side comparison of Monolithic Power Systems' Earnings Growth And 17% ROE

At first glance, Monolithic Power Systems seems to have a decent ROE. Especially when compared to the industry average of 11% the company's ROE looks pretty impressive. This certainly adds some context to Monolithic Power Systems' exceptional 27% net income growth seen over the past five years. We reckon that there could also be other factors at play here. 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.

We then compared Monolithic Power Systems' net income growth with the industry and we're pleased to see that the company's growth figure is higher when compared with the industry which has a growth rate of 16% in the same period.

Earnings growth is an important metric to consider when valuing a stock. It’s important for an investor to know whether the market has priced in the company's expected earnings growth (or decline). This then helps them determine if the stock is placed for a bright or bleak future. One good indicator of expected earnings growth is the P/E ratio which determines the price the market is willing to pay for a stock based on its earnings prospects. So, you may want to check if Monolithic Power Systems is trading on a high P/E or a low P/E, relative to its industry.

Is Monolithic Power Systems Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?

The high three-year median payout ratio of 52% (implying that it keeps only 48% of profits) for Monolithic Power Systems suggests that the company's growth wasn't really hampered despite it returning most of the earnings to its shareholders.

Additionally, Monolithic Power Systems has paid dividends over a period of six years which means that the company is pretty serious about sharing its profits with shareholders. Upon studying the latest analysts' consensus data, we found that the company's future payout ratio is expected to drop to 38% over the next three years. As a result, the expected drop in Monolithic Power Systems' payout ratio explains the anticipated rise in the company's future ROE to 26%, over the same period.

Summary

Overall, we are quite pleased with Monolithic Power Systems' performance. Especially the high ROE, Which has contributed to the impressive growth seen in earnings. Despite the company reinvesting only a small portion of its profits, it still has managed to grow its earnings so that is appreciable. That being so, a study of the latest analyst forecasts show that the company is expected to see a slowdown in its future earnings growth. To know more about the company's future earnings growth forecasts take a look at this free report on analyst forecasts for the company to find out more.

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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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