|
|
Earnings momentum |
|
|
|
 Home Site Map Add Term Search About Us Contributors |
Earnings momentumAn increase in the earnings per share growth rate from one reporting period to the next.Earnings momentum Similar MatchesEarningsEarningsThe annual profits of a company after deduction of tax, dividends to preference shareholders and bondholders. Earnings are usually expressed on a per-share basis (e.g. 7p), and the earnings per share (EPS) figure is calculated by dividing total earnings by the average number of shares in issue for the relevant accounting period.E.g. earnings of £2m, with 10m shares in issue would give an EPS of 20pYou may see earnings used in several ways:Reported earnings: the figure in the company's accountsUnderlying earnings: the figure derived from reported earnings by excluding any one-off items (e.g. profit from the sale of land which is not part of the company's normal business)Diluted earnings: earnings after adjustment has been made for shares that may be issued in the future if holders of options, warrants and convertibles choose to exercise their rights. Earnings per shareEarnings per shareEarning per Share (EPS) = Earnings / Number of Shares in IssueEPS is a key ratio used in share valuations. It shows how much of the company's profits, after tax, each shareholder owns.Example: Goodco makes a post-tax profit of £1.2 million. There are 20 million shares in issue. EPS = £0.6What starts out as an easy calculation gets complicated because the rules on what constitute earnings are fuzzy, especially when it comes to 'extraordinary' items:When an industrial manufacturer sells a large parcel of land to a developer should that profit be treated the same as the profits from its mainstream activities?If its profits one year are wiped out by an uninsurable natural disaster at its plant, should that event be regarded as just a normal cost of doing business?Until recently companies had discretion about how they treated one-offs. They could call an unusual profit 'exceptional' and include it in their EPS, and call an unusual loss 'extraordinary' and exclude it from EPS. This made it very difficult for investors to gauge the true progress of the business.Various Financial Reporting Standards (FRS) have tried to regularise treatment of one-offs, but if anything have made analysis harder. Large companies now report EPS in different ways, and the challenge for investors is knowing what basis has been used. When newspapers report EPS they use 'adjusted' EPS (also known as 'headline earnings') which strips out all profits/losses attributable to non-core activities. Earnings yieldEarnings yieldThe ratio of earnings per share, after allowing for tax and interest payments on fixed interest debt, to the current share price. The inverse of the price-earnings ratio. It is the total twelve months, earnings divided by number of outstanding shares, divided by the recent price, multiplied by 100. The end result is shown in percentage terms. We often look at earnings yield because this avoids the problem of zero earnings in the denominator of the price-earning ratio. Band earningsBand earningsPay between the lower earnings limit and upper earnings limit which is used to determine National Insurance Contributions. Earnings response coefficientEarnings response coefficientA measure of relation of stock returns to earnings surprises around the time of corporate earnings announcements. Further Suggestionsnet relevant earningsEarnings before interest and, taxes (EBIT) Primary earnings per (common) share Accounting earnings Earnings before interest after taxes (EBIAT) Earnings price ratio Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) price earnings ratio (P/E ratio) Normalized earnings retained earnings earnings yield Pretax earnings or profits Quality of earnings State Earnings Related Pension Scheme adjusted earnings earnings cap normalised earnings Earnings retention ratio upper earnings level taxable earnings price earnings growth factor lower earnings limit Earnings before taxes (EBT) earnings factor Earnings |
|
|
|