Yahoo Finance Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI) Has Fared Decently But Fundamentals Look Uncertain: What Lies Ahead For The Stock?
Kinder Morgan's (NYSE:KMI) stock is up by 1.5% over the past three months. However, we decided to study the company's mixed-bag of fundamentals to assess what this could mean for future share prices, as stock prices tend to be aligned with a company's long-term financial performance. Particularly, we will be paying attention to Kinder Morgan's ROE today.
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 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 Kinder Morgan
How Is ROE Calculated?
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 Kinder Morgan is:
8.2% = US$2.6b ÷ US$32b (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2022).
The 'return' is the yearly profit. That means that for every $1 worth of shareholders' equity, the company generated $0.08 in profit.
What Has ROE Got To Do With Earnings Growth?
So far, we've learned that ROE is a measure of a company's profitability. 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. 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 Kinder Morgan's Earnings Growth And 8.2% ROE
On the face of it, Kinder Morgan's ROE is not much to talk about. Next, when compared to the average industry ROE of 33%, the company's ROE leaves us feeling even less enthusiastic. However, we we're pleasantly surprised to see that Kinder Morgan grew its net income at a significant rate of 29% in the last five years. We reckon that there could be other factors at play here. For instance, the company has a low payout ratio or is being managed efficiently.
Next, on comparing with the industry net income growth, we found that Kinder Morgan's growth is quite high when compared to the industry average growth of 7.6% in the same period, which is great to see.
Earnings growth is an important metric to consider when valuing a stock. The investor should try to establish if the expected growth or decline in earnings, whichever the case may be, is priced in. This then helps them determine if the stock is placed for a bright or bleak future. Is Kinder Morgan fairly valued compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.
Is Kinder Morgan Efficiently Re-investing Its Profits?
The really high three-year median payout ratio of 140% for Kinder Morgan suggests that the company is paying its shareholders more than what it is earning. Despite this, the company's earnings grew significantly as we saw above. Although, it could be worth keeping an eye on the high payout ratio as that's a huge risk. To know the 2 risks we have identified for Kinder Morgan visit our risks dashboard for free.
Additionally, Kinder Morgan has paid dividends over a period of at least ten years which means that the company is pretty serious about sharing its profits with shareholders. Upon studying the latest analysts' consensus data, we found that the company's future payout ratio is expected to drop to 97% over the next three years. Regardless, the ROE is not expected to change much for the company despite the lower expected payout ratio.
Conclusion
On the whole, we feel that the performance shown by Kinder Morgan can be open to many interpretations. While no doubt its earnings growth is pretty substantial, its ROE and earnings retention is quite poor. So while the company has managed to grow its earnings in spite of this, we are unconvinced if this growth could extend, especially during troubled times. That being so, a study of the latest analyst forecasts show that the company is expected to see a slowdown in its future earnings growth. 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.
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