Yahoo Finance Z Energy Limited’s (NZE:ZEL) Earnings Grew 8.23%, Did It Beat Long-Term Trend?
Assessing Z Energy Limited’s (NZSE:ZEL) past track record of performance is a valuable exercise for investors. It enables us to reflect on whether the company has met or exceed expectations, which is a great indicator for future performance. Today I will assess ZEL’s recent performance announced on 31 March 2018 and evaluate these figures to its longer term trend and industry movements. Check out our latest analysis for Z Energy
Could ZEL beat the long-term trend and outperform its industry?
For the most up-to-date info, I use the ‘latest twelve-month’ data, which annualizes the most recent half-year data, or in some cases, the latest annual report is already the most recent financial year data. This technique enables me to analyze many different companies in a uniform manner using the most relevant data points. For Z Energy, its most recent trailing-twelve-month earnings is NZ$263.00M, which, against the previous year’s level, has increased by a somewhat soft 8.23%. Given that these figures are fairly short-term, I’ve created an annualized five-year figure for ZEL’s earnings, which stands at NZ$123.00M This means on average, Z Energy has been able to steadily improve its bottom line over the past few years as well.
What’s enabled this growth? Well, let’s take a look at whether it is merely due to industry tailwinds, or if Z Energy has seen some company-specific growth. Over the last couple of years, Z Energy grew its bottom line faster than revenue by successfully controlling its costs. This has caused a margin expansion and profitability over time. Eyeballing growth from a sector-level, the NZ oil and gas industry has been growing its average earnings by double-digit 25.50% over the past twelve months, . This is a turnaround from a volatile drop of -2.92% in the previous few years. This suggests that, in the recent industry expansion, Z Energy has not been able to gain as much as its average peer.
What does this mean?
While past data is useful, it doesn’t tell the whole story. Companies that have performed well in the past, such as Z Energy gives investors conviction. However, the next step would be to assess whether the future looks as optimistic. I suggest you continue to research Z Energy to get a more holistic view of the stock by looking at:
Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for ZEL’s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for ZEL’s outlook.
Financial Health: Is ZEL’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 March 2018. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.
To help readers see pass 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.
