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Whitehaven Coal (ASX:WHC) has had a great run on the share market with its stock up by a significant 18% over the last 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 Whitehaven Coal's ROE.
Return on equity or ROE is a key measure used to assess how efficiently a company's management is utilizing the company's capital. Put another way, it reveals the company's success at turning shareholder investments into profits.
See our latest analysis for Whitehaven Coal
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
So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Whitehaven Coal is:
22% = AU$1.1b ÷ AU$5.2b (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2023).
The 'return' is the income the business earned over the last year. Another way to think of that is that for every A$1 worth of equity, the company was able to earn A$0.22 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.
A Side By Side comparison of Whitehaven Coal's Earnings Growth And 22% ROE
At first glance, Whitehaven Coal seems to have a decent ROE. Especially when compared to the industry average of 15% the company's ROE looks pretty impressive. This certainly adds some context to Whitehaven Coal's exceptional 48% net income growth seen over the past five years. However, there could also be other causes behind this growth. 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.
Next, on comparing with the industry net income growth, we found that Whitehaven Coal's growth is quite high when compared to the industry average growth of 33% in the same period, which is great to see.
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. If you're wondering about Whitehaven Coal's's valuation, check out this gauge of its price-to-earnings ratio, as compared to its industry.