Zhejiang Supor's (SZSE:002032) stock up by 7.5% over the past three months. Given that the stock prices usually follow long-term business performance, we wonder if the company's mixed financials could have any adverse effect on its current price price movement In this article, we decided to focus on Zhejiang Supor's ROE.

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. In other words, it is a profitability ratio which measures the rate of return on the capital provided by the company's shareholders.

How Is ROE Calculated?

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 Zhejiang Supor is:

40% = CN¥2.3b ÷ CN¥5.6b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2024).

The 'return' refers to a company's earnings over the last year. That means that for every CN¥1 worth of shareholders' equity, the company generated CN¥0.40 in profit.

What Is The Relationship Between ROE And 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 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.

A Side By Side comparison of Zhejiang Supor's Earnings Growth And 40% ROE

First thing first, we like that Zhejiang Supor has an impressive ROE. Additionally, the company's ROE is higher compared to the industry average of 9.3% which is quite remarkable. Despite this, Zhejiang Supor's five year net income growth was quite low averaging at only 4.5%. That's a bit unexpected from a company which has such a high rate of return. We reckon that a low growth, when returns are quite high could be the result of certain circumstances like low earnings retention or or poor allocation of capital.

Next, on comparing with the industry net income growth, we found that Zhejiang Supor's reported growth was lower than the industry growth of 8.1% over the last few years, which is not something we like to see.

The basis for attaching value to a company is, to a great extent, tied to its earnings growth. It's important for an investor to know whether the market has priced in the company's expected earnings growth (or decline). By doing so, they will have an idea if the stock is headed into clear blue waters or if swampy waters await. Has the market priced in the future outlook for 002032? You can find out in our latest intrinsic value infographic research report.

Is Zhejiang Supor Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?

With a high three-year median payout ratio of 99% (or a retention ratio of 1.2%), most of Zhejiang Supor's profits are being paid to shareholders. This definitely contributes to the low earnings growth seen by the company.

In addition, Zhejiang Supor 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. Our latest analyst data shows that the future payout ratio of the company is expected to drop to 78% over the next three years. However, the company's ROE is not expected to change by much despite the lower expected payout ratio.

Summary

Overall, we have mixed feelings about Zhejiang Supor. In spite of the high ROE, the company has failed to see growth in its earnings due to it paying out most of its profits as dividend, with almost nothing left to invest into its own business. With that said, the latest industry analyst forecasts reveal that the company's earnings are expected to accelerate. 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.

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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.