Zhejiang Fenglong Electric's (SZSE:002931) stock is up by a considerable 18% over the past week. However, we decided to pay attention to the company's fundamentals which don't appear to give a clear sign about the company's financial health. Particularly, we will be paying attention to Zhejiang Fenglong Electric's 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. In simpler terms, it measures the profitability of a company in relation to shareholder's equity.

Check out our latest analysis for Zhejiang Fenglong Electric

How Is ROE Calculated?

Return on equity 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 Fenglong Electric is:

3.3% = CN¥24m ÷ CN¥727m (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2023).

The 'return' refers to a company's earnings over the last year. So, this means that for every CN¥1 of its shareholder's investments, the company generates a profit of CN¥0.03.

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 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.

Zhejiang Fenglong Electric's Earnings Growth And 3.3% ROE

It is quite clear that Zhejiang Fenglong Electric's ROE is rather low. Even compared to the average industry ROE of 7.9%, the company's ROE is quite dismal. As a result, Zhejiang Fenglong Electric's flat earnings over the past five years doesn't come as a surprise given its lower ROE.

As a next step, we compared Zhejiang Fenglong Electric'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 11% in the same 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 Zhejiang Fenglong Electric fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.

Is Zhejiang Fenglong Electric 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.

Conclusion

Overall, we have mixed feelings about Zhejiang Fenglong Electric. While the company does have a high rate of reinvestment, the low ROE means that all that reinvestment is not reaping any benefit to its investors, and moreover, its having a negative impact on the earnings growth. So far, we've only made a quick discussion around the company's earnings growth. So it may be worth checking this free detailed graph of Zhejiang Fenglong Electric'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.