Yahoo Finance Lands' End, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:LE) Stock Has Seen Strong Momentum: Does That Call For Deeper Study Of Its Financial Prospects?
Lands' End's (NASDAQ:LE) stock is up by a considerable 40% over the past month. Given that stock prices are usually aligned with a company's financial performance in the long-term, we decided to study its financial indicators more closely to see if they had a hand to play in the recent price move. In this article, we decided to focus on Lands' End's ROE.
Return on Equity or ROE is a test of how effectively a company is growing its value and managing investors’ money. Simply put, it is used to assess the profitability of a company in relation to its equity capital.
View our latest analysis for Lands' End
How To Calculate Return On Equity?
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 Lands' End is:
9.2% = US$34m ÷ US$370m (Based on the trailing twelve months to April 2021).
The 'return' is the profit over the last twelve months. One way to conceptualize this is that for each $1 of shareholders' capital it has, the company made $0.09 in profit.
What Is The Relationship Between ROE And Earnings Growth?
Thus far, we have learned that ROE measures how efficiently a company is generating its profits. 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.
Lands' End's Earnings Growth And 9.2% ROE
When you first look at it, Lands' End's ROE doesn't look that attractive. Next, when compared to the average industry ROE of 22%, the company's ROE leaves us feeling even less enthusiastic. However, we we're pleasantly surprised to see that Lands' End grew its net income at a significant rate of 55% in the last five years. So, there might be other aspects that are positively influencing the company's earnings growth. Such as - high earnings retention or an efficient management in place.
We then compared Lands' End's 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 29% in the same period.
Earnings growth is a huge factor in stock valuation. What investors need to determine next is if the expected earnings growth, or the lack of it, is already built into the share price. By doing so, they will have an idea if the stock is headed into clear blue waters or if swampy waters await. Is LE fairly valued? This infographic on the company's intrinsic value has everything you need to know.
Is Lands' End Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?
Conclusion
Overall, we feel that Lands' End certainly does have some positive factors to consider. Despite its low rate of return, the fact that the company reinvests a very high portion of its profits into its business, no doubt contributed to its high earnings growth. 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.
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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