Yahoo Finance Linamar Corporation's (TSE:LNR) Stock is Soaring But Financials Seem Inconsistent: Will The Uptrend Continue?
Linamar (TSE:LNR) has had a great run on the share market with its stock up by a significant 19% over the last three months. But the company's key financial indicators appear to be differing across the board and that makes us question whether or not the company's current share price momentum can be maintained. In this article, we decided to focus on Linamar's ROE.
Return on equity or ROE is an important factor to be considered by a shareholder because it tells them how effectively their capital is being reinvested. In other words, it is a profitability ratio which measures the rate of return on the capital provided by the company's shareholders.
Check out our latest analysis for Linamar
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 Linamar is:
8.3% = CA$384m ÷ CA$4.6b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2022).
The 'return' is the amount earned after tax over the last twelve months. So, this means that for every CA$1 of its shareholder's investments, the company generates a profit of CA$0.08.
Why Is ROE Important For Earnings Growth?
So far, we've learned that ROE is a measure of a company's profitability. We now need to evaluate how much profit the company reinvests or "retains" for future growth which then gives us an idea about the growth potential of the company. 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 Linamar's Earnings Growth And 8.3% ROE
On the face of it, Linamar's ROE is not much to talk about. However, its ROE is similar to the industry average of 8.3%, so we won't completely dismiss the company. But then again, Linamar's five year net income shrunk at a rate of 11%. Remember, the company's ROE is a bit low to begin with. Therefore, the decline in earnings could also be the result of this.
From the 11% decline reported by the industry in the same period, we infer that Linamar and its industry are both shrinking at a similar rate.
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. This then helps them determine if the stock is placed for a bright or bleak future. Is LNR fairly valued? This infographic on the company's intrinsic value has everything you need to know.
Is Linamar Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?
Linamar's low three-year median payout ratio of 11% (implying that it retains the remaining 89% of its profits) comes as a surprise when you pair it with the shrinking earnings. The low payout should mean that the company is retaining most of its earnings and consequently, should see some growth. It looks like there might be some other reasons to explain the lack in that respect. For example, the business could be in decline.
In addition, Linamar has been paying dividends over a period of at least ten years suggesting that keeping up dividend payments is way more important to the management even if it comes at the cost of business growth. Upon studying the latest analysts' consensus data, we found that the company is expected to keep paying out approximately 9.2% of its profits over the next three years.
Summary
In total, we're a bit ambivalent about Linamar's performance. While the company does have a high rate of reinvestment, the low ROE means that all that reinvestment is not reaping any benefit to its investors, and moreover, its having a negative impact on the earnings growth. Wrapping up, we would proceed with caution with this company and one way of doing that would be to look at the risk profile of the business. You can see the 1 risk we have identified for Linamar by visiting our risks dashboard for free on our platform here.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
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.
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