Guangdong Leadyo IC Testing (SHSE:688135) has had a rough three months with its share price down 26%. However, stock prices are usually driven by a company's financials over the long term, which in this case look pretty respectable. In this article, we decided to focus on Guangdong Leadyo IC Testing'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.

How To 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 Guangdong Leadyo IC Testing is:

1.9% = CN¥22m ÷ CN¥1.1b (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 CN¥1 worth of shareholders' equity, the company generated CN¥0.02 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. 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. Assuming everything else remains unchanged, the higher the ROE and profit retention, the higher the growth rate of a company compared to companies that don't necessarily bear these characteristics.

Guangdong Leadyo IC Testing's Earnings Growth And 1.9% ROE

It is quite clear that Guangdong Leadyo IC Testing's ROE is rather low. Even compared to the average industry ROE of 6.2%, the company's ROE is quite dismal. Guangdong Leadyo IC Testing was still able to see a decent net income growth of 5.2% over the past five years. We believe that 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.

As a next step, we compared Guangdong Leadyo IC Testing's net income growth with the industry and were disappointed to see that the company's growth is lower than the industry average growth of 26% in the same period.

Earnings growth is an important metric to consider when valuing a stock. 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. If you're wondering about Guangdong Leadyo IC Testing's's valuation, check out this gauge of its price-to-earnings ratio, as compared to its industry.

Is Guangdong Leadyo IC Testing Efficiently Re-investing Its Profits?

While the company did pay out a portion of its dividend in the past, it currently doesn't pay a dividend. We infer that the company has been reinvesting all of its profits to grow its business.

Summary

On the whole, we do feel that Guangdong Leadyo IC Testing has some positive attributes. Namely, its respectable earnings growth, which it achieved due to it retaining most of its profits. However, given the low ROE, investors may not be benefitting from all that reinvestment after all. Up till now, we've only made a short study of the company's growth data. So it may be worth checking this free detailed graph of Guangdong Leadyo IC Testing's past earnings, as well as revenue and cash flows to get a deeper insight into the company's performance.

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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.