Shanghai Xinhua Media (SHSE:600825) has had a great run on the share market with its stock up by a significant 11% over the last three months. 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 Shanghai Xinhua Media's ROE today.

Return on Equity or ROE is a test of how effectively a company is growing its value and managing investors' money. In other words, it is a profitability ratio which measures the rate of return on the capital provided by the company's shareholders.

Check out our latest analysis for Shanghai Xinhua Media

How To 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 Shanghai Xinhua Media is:

1.6% = CN¥41m ÷ CN¥2.5b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2023).

The 'return' is the income the business earned over the last year. Another way to think of that is that for every CN¥1 worth of equity, the company was able to earn CN¥0.02 in profit.

Why Is ROE Important For Earnings Growth?

Thus far, we have learned that ROE measures how efficiently a company is generating its profits. 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.

Shanghai Xinhua Media's Earnings Growth And 1.6% ROE

It is hard to argue that Shanghai Xinhua Media's ROE is much good in and of itself. Even compared to the average industry ROE of 6.1%, the company's ROE is quite dismal. Therefore, it might not be wrong to say that the five year net income decline of 5.0% seen by Shanghai Xinhua Media was possibly a result of it having a lower ROE. We believe that there also might be other aspects that are negatively influencing the company's earnings prospects. Such as - low earnings retention or poor allocation of capital.

That being said, we compared Shanghai Xinhua Media's performance with the industry and were concerned when we found that while the company has shrunk its earnings, the industry has grown its earnings at a rate of 1.6% in the same 5-year period.

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). Doing so will help them establish if the stock's future looks promising or ominous. If you're wondering about Shanghai Xinhua Media's's valuation, check out this gauge of its price-to-earnings ratio, as compared to its industry.

Is Shanghai Xinhua Media Using Its Retained Earnings Effectively?

While the company did payout a portion of its dividend in the past, it currently doesn't pay a dividend. This implies that potentially all of its profits are being reinvested in the business.

Summary

Overall, we have mixed feelings about Shanghai Xinhua Media. Even though it appears to be retaining most of its profits, given the low ROE, investors may not be benefitting from all that reinvestment after all. The low earnings growth suggests our theory correct. Until now, we have only just grazed the surface of the company's past performance by looking at the company's fundamentals. To gain further insights into Shanghai Xinhua Media's past profit growth, check out this visualization of past earnings, revenue and cash flows.

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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.