Has Oil-Dri Corporation of America (NYSE:ODC) Stock's Recent Performance Got Anything to Do With Its Financial Health?

Most readers would already know that Oil-Dri Corporation of America's (NYSE:ODC) stock increased by 3.9% over the past month. As most would know, long-term fundamentals have a strong correlation with market price movements, so we decided to look at the company's key financial indicators today to determine if they have any role to play in the recent price movement. Particularly, we will be paying attention to Oil-Dri Corporation of America's ROE today.

Return on equity or ROE is an important factor to be considered by a shareholder because it tells them how effectively their capital is being reinvested. In other words, it is a profitability ratio which measures the rate of return on the capital provided by the company's shareholders.

Check out our latest analysis for Oil-Dri Corporation of America

How Is ROE Calculated?

The formula for ROE is:

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

So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Oil-Dri Corporation of America is:

4.9% = US$7.6m ÷ US$156m (Based on the trailing twelve months to October 2021).

The 'return' is the amount earned after tax over the last twelve months. Another way to think of that is that for every $1 worth of equity, the company was able to earn $0.05 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. Based on how much of its profits the company chooses to reinvest or "retain", we are then able to evaluate a company's future ability to generate profits. 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.

Oil-Dri Corporation of America's Earnings Growth And 4.9% ROE

On the face of it, Oil-Dri Corporation of America's ROE is not much to talk about. A quick further study shows that the company's ROE doesn't compare favorably to the industry average of 23% either. However, the moderate 9.7% net income growth seen by Oil-Dri Corporation of America over the past five years is definitely a positive. So, the growth in the company's earnings could probably have been caused by other variables. Such as - high earnings retention or an efficient management in place.

As a next step, we compared Oil-Dri Corporation of America's net income growth with the industry and found that the company has a similar growth figure when compared with the industry average growth rate of 9.3% in the same period.

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. One good indicator of expected earnings growth is the P/E ratio which determines the price the market is willing to pay for a stock based on its earnings prospects. So, you may want to check if Oil-Dri Corporation of America is trading on a high P/E or a low P/E, relative to its industry.

Is Oil-Dri Corporation of America Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?

Oil-Dri Corporation of America has a three-year median payout ratio of 48%, which implies that it retains the remaining 52% of its profits. This suggests that its dividend is well covered, and given the decent growth seen by the company, it looks like management is reinvesting its earnings efficiently.

Moreover, Oil-Dri Corporation of America is determined to keep sharing its profits with shareholders which we infer from its long history of paying a dividend for at least ten years.

Summary

On the whole, we do feel that Oil-Dri Corporation of America has some positive attributes. Despite its low rate of return, the fact that the company reinvests a very high portion of its profits into its business, no doubt contributed to its high earnings growth. While we won't completely dismiss the company, what we would do, is try to ascertain how risky the business is to make a more informed decision around the company. To know the 2 risks we have identified for Oil-Dri Corporation of America visit our risks dashboard for free.

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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.