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Is Weakness In Optimax Holdings Berhad (KLSE:OPTIMAX) Stock A Sign That The Market Could be Wrong Given Its Strong Financial Prospects?

It is hard to get excited after looking at Optimax Holdings Berhad's (KLSE:OPTIMAX) recent performance, when its stock has declined 8.0% over the past month. However, a closer look at its sound financials might cause you to think again. Given that fundamentals usually drive long-term market outcomes, the company is worth looking at. In this article, we decided to focus on Optimax Holdings Berhad's ROE.

Return on Equity or ROE is a test of how effectively a company is growing its value and managing investors’ money. In simpler terms, it measures the profitability of a company in relation to shareholder's equity.

View our latest analysis for Optimax Holdings Berhad

How Do You Calculate Return On Equity?

ROE can be calculated by using the formula:

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

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So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Optimax Holdings Berhad is:

21% = RM14m ÷ RM68m (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2023).

The 'return' is the income the business earned over the last year. That means that for every MYR1 worth of shareholders' equity, the company generated MYR0.21 in profit.

Why Is ROE Important For Earnings Growth?

Thus far, we have learned that ROE measures how efficiently a company is generating its profits. Depending on how much of these profits the company reinvests or "retains", and how effectively it does so, we are then able to assess a company’s earnings growth potential. 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.

Optimax Holdings Berhad's Earnings Growth And 21% ROE

At first glance, Optimax Holdings Berhad seems to have a decent ROE. Especially when compared to the industry average of 11% the company's ROE looks pretty impressive. Probably as a result of this, Optimax Holdings Berhad was able to see an impressive net income growth of 24% over the last five years. However, there could also be other causes behind this growth. For instance, the company has a low payout ratio or is being managed efficiently.

Next, on comparing Optimax Holdings Berhad's net income growth with the industry, we found that the company's reported growth is similar to the industry average growth rate of 24% over the last few years.

past-earnings-growth
past-earnings-growth

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. This then helps them determine if the stock is placed for a bright or bleak future. Is Optimax Holdings Berhad fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.

Is Optimax Holdings Berhad Efficiently Re-investing Its Profits?

Optimax Holdings Berhad has a significant three-year median payout ratio of 72%, meaning the company only retains 28% of its income. This implies that the company has been able to achieve high earnings growth despite returning most of its profits to shareholders.

While Optimax Holdings Berhad has been growing its earnings, it only recently started to pay dividends which likely means that the company decided to impress new and existing shareholders with a dividend. Our latest analyst data shows that the future payout ratio of the company over the next three years is expected to be approximately 71%. Therefore, the company's future ROE is also not expected to change by much with analysts predicting an ROE of 20%.

Summary

In total, we are pretty happy with Optimax Holdings Berhad'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. With that said, the latest industry analyst forecasts reveal that the company's earnings growth is expected to slow down. Are these analysts expectations based on the broad expectations for the industry, or on the company's fundamentals? Click here to be taken to our analyst's forecasts page for the company.

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.