Yahoo Finance Declining Stock and Solid Fundamentals: Is The Market Wrong About Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)?
With its stock down 31% over the past three months, it is easy to disregard Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META). But if you pay close attention, you might gather that its strong financials could mean that the stock could potentially see an increase in value in the long-term, given how markets usually reward companies with good financial health. Particularly, we will be paying attention to Meta Platforms' 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.
See our latest analysis for Meta Platforms
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 Meta Platforms is:
30% = US$37b ÷ US$123b (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2022).
The 'return' refers to a company's earnings over the last year. Another way to think of that is that for every $1 worth of equity, the company was able to earn $0.30 in profit.
What Is The Relationship Between ROE And 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. Generally speaking, other things being equal, firms with a high return on equity and profit retention, have a higher growth rate than firms that don’t share these attributes.
A Side By Side comparison of Meta Platforms' Earnings Growth And 30% ROE
First thing first, we like that Meta Platforms has an impressive ROE. Secondly, even when compared to the industry average of 6.4% the company's ROE is quite impressive. Under the circumstances, Meta Platforms' considerable five year net income growth of 23% was to be expected.
Next, on comparing with the industry net income growth, we found that Meta Platforms' growth is quite high when compared to the industry average growth of 17% in the same period, which is great to see.
Earnings growth is a huge factor in stock valuation. The investor should try to establish if the expected growth or decline in earnings, whichever the case may be, is priced in. By doing so, they will have an idea if the stock is headed into clear blue waters or if swampy waters await. Is Meta Platforms fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.
Is Meta Platforms Using Its Retained Earnings Effectively?
Given that Meta Platforms doesn't pay any dividend to its shareholders, we infer that the company has been reinvesting all of its profits to grow its business.
Conclusion
On the whole, we feel that Meta Platforms' performance has been quite good. In particular, it's great to see that the company is investing heavily into its business and along with a high rate of return, that has resulted in a sizeable growth in its earnings. Having said that, the company's earnings growth is expected to slow down, as forecasted in the current analyst estimates. To know more about the latest analysts predictions for the company, check out this visualization of analyst forecasts 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.
