Yahoo Finance How Independent News & Media plc’s (ISE:IPDC) Earnings Growth Stacks Up Against The Industry
After reading Independent News & Media plc’s (ISE:IPDC) most recent earnings announcement (31 December 2017), I found it useful to look back at how the company has performed in the past and compare this against the latest numbers. As a long-term investor I tend to focus on earnings trend, rather than a single number at one point in time. Also, comparing it against an industry benchmark to understand whether it outperformed, or is simply riding an industry wave, is a crucial aspect. Below is a brief commentary on my key takeaways.
Check out our latest analysis for Independent News & Media
Commentary On IPDC’s Past Performance
IPDC recently turned a profit of €12.5m (most recent trailing twelve-months) compared to its average loss of -€33.3k over the past five years.
Over the past couple of years, Independent News & Media grew bottom-line, while its top-line declined, by effectively controlling its costs. This has caused to a margin expansion and profitability over time. Eyeballing growth from a sector-level, the IE media industry has been growing its average earnings by double-digit 18.0% over the prior twelve months, and a less exciting 9.2% over the past five years. Since the sector in is relatively small, I’ve included similar companies in the wider region in order to get a better idea of the growth, which is a median of profitable companies of companies such as , and . This means whatever tailwind the industry is deriving benefit from, Independent News & Media has not been able to leverage it as much as its average peer.
In terms of returns from investment, Independent News & Media has fallen short of achieving a 20% return on equity (ROE), recording 16.4% instead. However, its return on assets (ROA) of 6.1% exceeds the IE Media industry of 5.5%, indicating Independent News & Media has used its assets more efficiently. And finally, its return on capital (ROC), which also accounts for Independent News & Media’s debt level, has increased over the past 3 years from 16.4% to 18.2%.
What does this mean?
Independent News & Media’s track record can be a valuable insight into its earnings performance, but it certainly doesn’t tell the whole story. Companies that are profitable, but have unpredictable earnings, can have many factors affecting its business. You should continue to research Independent News & Media to get a better picture of the stock by looking at:
Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for IPDC’s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for IPDC’s outlook.
Financial Health: Are IPDC’s operations financially sustainable? Balance sheets can be hard to analyze, which is why we’ve done it for you. Check out our financial health checks here.
Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore our free list of these great stocks here.
NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the trailing twelve months from 31 December 2017. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.
To help readers see past the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements.
The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned. For errors that warrant correction please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com.