Are Robust Financials Driving The Recent Rally In Marvell Technology Group Ltd.'s (NASDAQ:MRVL) Stock?

Marvell Technology Group (NASDAQ:MRVL) has had a great run on the share market with its stock up by a significant 12% over the last three months. Given that the market rewards strong financials in the long-term, we wonder if that is the case in this instance. Particularly, we will be paying attention to Marvell Technology Group's ROE today.

Return on Equity or ROE is a test of how effectively a company is growing its value and managing investors’ money. Simply put, it is used to assess the profitability of a company in relation to its equity capital.

See our latest analysis for Marvell Technology Group

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

So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Marvell Technology Group is:

17% = US$1.4b ÷ US$8.4b (Based on the trailing twelve months to August 2020).

The 'return' is the income the business earned over the last year. Another way to think of that is that for every $1 worth of equity, the company was able to earn $0.17 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.

Marvell Technology Group's Earnings Growth And 17% ROE

At first glance, Marvell Technology Group seems to have a decent ROE. Especially when compared to the industry average of 11% the company's ROE looks pretty impressive. This probably laid the ground for Marvell Technology Group's significant 53% net income growth seen over the past five years. However, there could also be other causes behind this growth. For example, it is possible that the company's management has made some good strategic decisions, or that the company has a low payout ratio.

Next, on comparing with the industry net income growth, we found that Marvell Technology Group's growth is quite high when compared to the industry average growth of 16% 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. 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 Marvell Technology Group is trading on a high P/E or a low P/E, relative to its industry.

Is Marvell Technology Group Making Efficient Use Of Its Profits?

Marvell Technology Group's ' three-year median payout ratio is on the lower side at 11% implying that it is retaining a higher percentage (89%) of its profits. So it seems like the management is reinvesting profits heavily to grow its business and this reflects in its earnings growth number.

Additionally, Marvell Technology Group has paid dividends over a period of eight years which means that the company is pretty serious about sharing its profits with shareholders. Our latest analyst data shows that the future payout ratio of the company is expected to rise to 17% over the next three years. Therefore, the expected rise in the payout ratio explains why the company's ROE is expected to decline to 11% over the same period.

Summary

In total, we are pretty happy with Marvell Technology Group's performance. Specifically, we like that the company is reinvesting a huge chunk of its profits at a high rate of return. This of course has caused the company to see substantial growth in its earnings. 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.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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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