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Does The Market Have A Low Tolerance For Manawa Energy Limited's (NZSE:MNW) Mixed Fundamentals?

With its stock down 17% over the past three months, it is easy to disregard Manawa Energy (NZSE:MNW). We, however decided to study the company's financials to determine if they have got anything to do with the price decline. Stock prices are usually driven by a company’s financial performance over the long term, and therefore we decided to pay more attention to the company's financial performance. In this article, we decided to focus on Manawa Energy's ROE.

Return on equity or ROE is a key measure used to assess how efficiently a company's management is utilizing the company's capital. In short, ROE shows the profit each dollar generates with respect to its shareholder investments.

View our latest analysis for Manawa Energy

How Do You Calculate Return On Equity?

Return on equity can be calculated by using the formula:

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

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So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Manawa Energy is:

10% = NZ$108m ÷ NZ$1.0b (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2022).

The 'return' is the yearly profit. That means that for every NZ$1 worth of shareholders' equity, the company generated NZ$0.10 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. 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.

A Side By Side comparison of Manawa Energy's Earnings Growth And 10% ROE

At first glance, Manawa Energy seems to have a decent ROE. Especially when compared to the industry average of 8.2% the company's ROE looks pretty impressive. Needless to say, we are quite surprised to see that Manawa Energy's net income shrunk at a rate of 4.5% over the past five years. Based on this, we feel that there might be other reasons which haven't been discussed so far in this article that could be hampering the company's growth. These include low earnings retention or poor allocation of capital.

From the 4.5% decline reported by the industry in the same period, we infer that Manawa Energy and its industry are both shrinking at a similar rate.

past-earnings-growth
past-earnings-growth

The basis for attaching value to a company is, to a great extent, tied to its earnings growth. 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. Has the market priced in the future outlook for MNW? You can find out in our latest intrinsic value infographic research report.

Is Manawa Energy Using Its Retained Earnings Effectively?

With a three-year median payout ratio as high as 125%,Manawa Energy's shrinking earnings don't come as a surprise as the company is paying a dividend which is beyond its means. Paying a dividend beyond their means is usually not viable over the long term. To know the 4 risks we have identified for Manawa Energy visit our risks dashboard for free.

Moreover, Manawa Energy has been paying dividends for six years, which is a considerable amount of time, suggesting that management must have perceived that the shareholders prefer consistent dividends even though earnings have been shrinking. Our latest analyst data shows that the future payout ratio of the company is expected to drop to 83% over the next three years. However, the company's ROE is not expected to change by much despite the lower expected payout ratio.

Conclusion

On the whole, we feel that the performance shown by Manawa Energy can be open to many interpretations. Despite the high ROE, the company has a disappointing earnings growth number, due to its poor rate of reinvestment into its business. That being so, the latest industry analyst forecasts show that analysts are forecasting a slight improvement in the company's future earnings growth. This could offer some relief to the company's existing shareholders. To know more about the latest analysts predictions for the company, check out this visualization of analyst forecasts for the company.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.