Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd (SHSE:603439) has had a great run on the share market with its stock up by a significant 17% over the last three months. Given the company's impressive performance, we decided to study its financial indicators more closely as a company's financial health over the long-term usually dictates market outcomes. Specifically, we decided to study Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd's ROE in this article.

Return on equity or ROE is an important factor to be considered by a shareholder because it tells them how effectively their capital is being reinvested. In simpler terms, it measures the profitability of a company in relation to shareholder's equity.

How To Calculate Return On Equity?

The formula for return on equity is:

Return on Equity = Net Profit (from continuing operations) ÷ Shareholders' Equity

So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd is:

18% = CN¥336m ÷ CN¥1.9b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2024).

The 'return' is the amount earned after tax over the last twelve months. Another way to think of that is that for every CN¥1 worth of equity, the company was able to earn CN¥0.18 in profit.

Why Is ROE Important For Earnings Growth?

So far, we've learned that ROE is a measure of a company's profitability. 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 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.

Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd's Earnings Growth And 18% ROE

To start with, Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd's ROE looks acceptable. On comparing with the average industry ROE of 7.7% the company's ROE looks pretty remarkable. Probably as a result of this, Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd was able to see an impressive net income growth of 26% over the last five years. However, there could also be other causes behind this growth. Such as - high earnings retention or an efficient management in place.

As a next step, we compared Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd's net income growth with the industry, and pleasingly, we found that the growth seen by the company is higher than the average industry growth of 9.1%.

Earnings growth is a huge factor in stock valuation. 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. Is Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.

Is Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd Efficiently Re-investing Its Profits?

Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd has a three-year median payout ratio of 25% (where it is retaining 75% of its income) which is not too low or not too high. This suggests that its dividend is well covered, and given the high growth we discussed above, it looks like Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd is reinvesting its earnings efficiently.

Besides, Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd has been paying dividends over a period of three years. This shows that the company is committed to sharing profits with its shareholders. Upon studying the latest analysts' consensus data, we found that the company's future payout ratio is expected to rise to 50% over the next three years. However, the company's ROE is not expected to change by much despite the higher expected payout ratio.

Summary

On the whole, we feel that Guizhou Sanli PharmaceuticalLtd's performance has been quite good. Particularly, we like that the company is reinvesting heavily into its business, and at a high rate of return. Unsurprisingly, this has led to an impressive earnings growth. On studying current analyst estimates, we found that analysts expect the company to continue its recent growth streak. To know more about the company's future earnings growth forecasts take a look at this free report on analyst forecasts for the company to find out more.

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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.