CNX Resources' (NYSE:CNX) stock is up by a considerable 37% 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. Particularly, we will be paying attention to CNX Resources' ROE today.

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. Put another way, it reveals the company's success at turning shareholder investments into profits.

View our latest analysis for CNX Resources

How Do You Calculate Return On Equity?

The formula for ROE is:

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

So, based on the above formula, the ROE for CNX Resources is:

13% = US$568m ÷ US$4.3b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2024).

The 'return' is the profit over the last twelve months. Another way to think of that is that for every $1 worth of equity, the company was able to earn $0.13 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. 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. Assuming all else is equal, companies that have both a higher return on equity and higher profit retention are usually the ones that have a higher growth rate when compared to companies that don't have the same features.

A Side By Side comparison of CNX Resources' Earnings Growth And 13% ROE

At first glance, CNX Resources seems to have a decent ROE. And on comparing with the industry, we found that the the average industry ROE is similar at 15%. This probably goes some way in explaining CNX Resources' significant 46% net income growth over the past five years amongst other factors. We reckon that there could also be other factors at play here. For instance, the company has a low payout ratio or is being managed efficiently.

We then performed a comparison between CNX Resources' net income growth with the industry, which revealed that the company's growth is similar to the average industry growth of 41% in the same 5-year 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. Is CNX fairly valued? This infographic on the company's intrinsic value has everything you need to know.