WESCO International's (NYSE:WCC) stock up by 2.0% over the past month. Given its impressive performance, we decided to study the company's key financial indicators as a company's long-term fundamentals usually dictate market outcomes. Specifically, we decided to study WESCO International's ROE in this article.

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. Simply put, it is used to assess the profitability of a company in relation to its equity capital.

View our latest analysis for WESCO International

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 WESCO International is:

14% = US$696m ÷ US$5.0b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2024).

The 'return' refers to a company's earnings over the last year. That means that for every $1 worth of shareholders' equity, the company generated $0.14 in profit.

Why Is ROE Important For Earnings Growth?

We have already established that ROE serves as an efficient profit-generating gauge for a company's future earnings. 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 everything else remains unchanged, the higher the ROE and profit retention, the higher the growth rate of a company compared to companies that don't necessarily bear these characteristics.

WESCO International's Earnings Growth And 14% ROE

To start with, WESCO International's ROE looks acceptable. Further, the company's ROE is similar to the industry average of 17%. This probably goes some way in explaining WESCO International's significant 33% net income growth over the past five years amongst other factors. We reckon that there could also be other factors at play here. For instance, the company has a low payout ratio or is being managed efficiently.

As a next step, we compared WESCO International's net income growth with the industry, and pleasingly, we found that the growth seen by the company is higher than the average industry growth of 23%.

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. By doing so, they will have an idea if the stock is headed into clear blue waters or if swampy waters await. Is WCC fairly valued? This infographic on the company's intrinsic value has everything you need to know.

Is WESCO International Efficiently Re-investing Its Profits?

WESCO International'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.

Along with seeing a growth in earnings, WESCO International only recently started paying dividends. Its quite possible that the company was looking to impress its shareholders. Our latest analyst data shows that the future payout ratio of the company over the next three years is expected to be approximately 10%. Accordingly, forecasts suggest that WESCO International's future ROE will be 13% which is again, similar to the current ROE.

Summary

Overall, we are quite pleased with WESCO International'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. With that said, the latest industry analyst forecasts reveal that the company's earnings growth is expected to slow down. To know more about the company's future earnings growth forecasts take a look at this free report on analyst forecasts for the company to find out more.

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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.