A lackluster earnings announcement from Suzhou Future Electrical Co., Ltd. (SZSE:301386) last week didn't sink the stock price. We think that investors are worried about some weaknesses underlying the earnings.

The Impact Of Unusual Items On Profit

To properly understand Suzhou Future Electrical's profit results, we need to consider the CN¥14m gain attributed to unusual items. We can't deny that higher profits generally leave us optimistic, but we'd prefer it if the profit were to be sustainable. When we analysed the vast majority of listed companies worldwide, we found that significant unusual items are often not repeated. And that's as you'd expect, given these boosts are described as 'unusual'. Assuming those unusual items don't show up again in the current year, we'd thus expect profit to be weaker next year (in the absence of business growth, that is).

Note: we always recommend investors check balance sheet strength. Click here to be taken to our balance sheet analysis of Suzhou Future Electrical.

Our Take On Suzhou Future Electrical's Profit Performance

Arguably, Suzhou Future Electrical's statutory earnings have been distorted by unusual items boosting profit. Therefore, it seems possible to us that Suzhou Future Electrical's true underlying earnings power is actually less than its statutory profit. In further bad news, its earnings per share decreased in the last year. The goal of this article has been to assess how well we can rely on the statutory earnings to reflect the company's potential, but there is plenty more to consider. Keep in mind, when it comes to analysing a stock it's worth noting the risks involved. You'd be interested to know, that we found 1 warning sign for Suzhou Future Electrical and you'll want to know about it.

Today we've zoomed in on a single data point to better understand the nature of Suzhou Future Electrical's profit. But there are plenty of other ways to inform your opinion of a company. Some people consider a high return on equity to be a good sign of a quality business. While it might take a little research on your behalf, you may find this free collection of companies boasting high return on equity, or this list of stocks with significant insider holdings to be useful.

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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.