Placing the 0.068149 Earnings Yield in Perspective for Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A)

The Earnings to Price yield of Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) is 0.041945.  This is calculated by taking the earnings per share and dividing it by the last closing share price.  This is one of the most popular methods investors use to evaluate a company’s financial performance.  Earnings Yield is calculated by taking the operating income or earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) and dividing it by the Enterprise Value of the company.  The Earnings Yield for Empire Company Limited TSX:EMP.A is 0.068149.  Earnings Yield helps investors measure the return on investment for a given company.  Similarly, the Earnings Yield Five Year Average is the five year average operating income or EBIT divided by the current enterprise value.  The Earnings Yield Five Year average for Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) is 0.053635.

Diversification can be an important aspect of any investor’s portfolio. Investors may choose to spread out stock holdings between foreign stocks and stocks with different market capitalizations. Investors may have to first become aware of the risk associated with owning a wide variety of stocks. Owning stocks that belong to different industries may also be a help to the success of the portfolio. Often times, sectors may trade off being market leaders. Owning all one sector may leave too much risk exposed if the sector suddenly tanks and falls out of favor with investors. Investors may need to occasionally do a strategic review of the equity portion of the portfolio. Knowing exactly what is held may help the investor when the time comes to make some adjustments.

Quant Scores/Key Ratios

Now we’ll turn to some key quant data and ratios. The Current Ratio of Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) is 0.99. The Current Ratio is used by investors to determine whether a company can pay short term and long term debts. The current ratio looks at all the liquid and non-liquid assets compared to the company’s total current liabilities. A high current ratio indicates that the company might have trouble managing their working capital. A low current ratio (when the current liabilities are higher than the current assets) indicates that the company may have trouble paying their short term obligations.

Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A)’s Leverage Ratio was recently noted as 0.225525. This ratio is calculated by dividing total debt by total assets plus total assets previous year, divided by two. The leverage of a company is relative to the amount of debt on the balance sheet. This ratio is often viewed as one measure of the financial health of a firm.

Investors might be trying to figure out the best way to approach the stock market. After creating a plan that includes a list of stocks to purchase, investors may be looking to gauge the best time to enter the trade. With markets still cruising along at high altitudes, investors may be worried about buying at the top. Most individuals would probably agree that getting out before the market drops would be the best play. Obviously this is much easier said than done. If the warning signs were blatant, everyone would know exactly when to sell and when to re-buy. When the stock market has a big decline, the natural instinct is generally to sell in order to protect gains or eliminate further losses. Trying to time the market can have negative implications for investors who are not prepared to handle extremely volatile market conditions. Being prepared for any sudden change in the overall economy or stock market conditions may help the investor stay afloat for the long haul.

The Gross Margin Score is calculated by looking at the Gross Margin and the overall stability of the company over the course of 8 years. The score is a number between one and one hundred (1 being best and 100 being the worst). The Gross Margin Score of Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) is 22.00000. The more stable the company, the lower the score. If a company is less stable over the course of time, they will have a higher score.

At the time of writing, Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) has a Piotroski F-Score of 6. The F-Score may help discover companies with strengthening balance sheets. The score may also be used to spot the weak performers. Joseph Piotroski developed the F-Score which employs nine different variables based on the company financial statement. A single point is assigned to each test that a stock passes. Typically, a stock scoring an 8 or 9 would be seen as strong. On the other end, a stock with a score from 0-2 would be viewed as weak.

Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) has an M-score Beneish of -2.499897. This M-score model is a little known investment tool that was developed by Messod Beneish in order to detect manipulation of financial statements. The score uses a combination of eight different variables. The specifics of the variables and formula can be found in the Beneish paper “The Detection of Earnings Manipulation”.

As the next round of earnings reports come into the spotlight next quarter, investors may be deciding how to get into the best position to make the most profitable trades. Earnings reports have the ability to influence stock prices dramatically. Sometimes it can be hard to figure out which way the price will go even if the reported numbers are up to snuff. Some investors enjoy the frantic trading opportunities around earnings reports, and others will stay as far away as possible. Even if the investor isn’t planning on making any moves during earnings season, it may be wise to follow what companies are reporting. If the numbers from a certain holding come in way out of whack, it may be necessary to do some in-depth research to try and find out the reason. Investors that make sure that all the bases are covered will typically find it easier to make sense out of certain anomalies that pop up in the markets from time to time. Putting in the extra time and effort to understand the ins and outs of a particular stock may help boost the novice investor up to the next level. Every investor wants their trades to be profitable, and doing that little extra piece of homework could be just what the finance doctor ordered for staying on top of the stock market. 

The Value Composite One (VC1) is a method that investors use to determine a company’s value.  The VC1 of Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) is 24.  A company with a value of 0 is thought to be an undervalued company, while a company with a value of 100 is considered an overvalued company.  The VC1 is calculated using the price to book value, price to sales, EBITDA to EV, price to cash flow, and price to earnings.  Similarly, the Value Composite Two (VC2) is calculated with the same ratios, but adds the Shareholder Yield.  The Value Composite Two of Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) is 21.

The MF Rank (aka the Magic Formula) is a formula that pinpoints a valuable company trading at a good price.  The formula is calculated by looking at companies that have a high earnings yield as well as a high return on invested capital.  The MF Rank of Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) is 4857.  A company with a low rank is considered a good company to invest in.  The Magic Formula was introduced in a book written by Joel Greenblatt, entitled, “The Little Book that Beats the Market”.

Shifting gears, we can see that Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) has a Q.i. Value of 17.00000. The Q.i. Value ranks companies using four ratios. These ratios consist of EBITDA Yield, FCF Yield, Liquidity, and Earnings Yield. The purpose of the Q.i. Value is to help identify companies that are the most undervalued. Typically, the lower the value, the more undervalued the company tends to be.

Price Index/Share Movement

We can now take a quick look at some historical stock price index data. Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) presently has a 10 month price index of 1.20363. The price index is calculated by dividing the current share price by the share price ten months ago. A ratio over one indicates an increase in share price over the period. A ratio lower than one shows that the price has decreased over that time period. Looking at some alternate time periods, the 12 month price index is 1.19295, the 24 month is 1.49914, and the 36 month is 1.37288. Narrowing in a bit closer, the 5 month price index is 1.25551, the 3 month is 1.06315, and the 1 month is currently 0.96408.

Stock volatility is a percentage that indicates whether a stock is a desirable purchase.  Investors look at the Volatility 12m to determine if a company has a low volatility percentage or not over the course of a year.  The Volatility 12m of Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) is 23.478600.  This is calculated by taking weekly log normal returns and standard deviation of the share price over one year annualized.  The lower the number, a company is thought to have low volatility.  The Volatility 3m is a similar percentage determined by the daily log normal returns and standard deviation of the share price over 3 months.  The Volatility 3m of Empire Company Limited (TSX:EMP.A) is 19.408500.  The Volatility 6m is the same, except measured over the course of six months.  The Volatility 6m is 24.019100.

Stock market investors are typically searching for solid quality companies to help boost the portfolio. There are plenty of quality companies out there, the tricky part may be determining what constitutes as quality. Many investors look for companies that are solid sales leaders within a market that is growing. Going further, investors may be studying a company’s proven track record and gauging the competence of current management. Adding other factors such as brand recognition and prospects for steady growth, investors may eventually find a company that is worth taking the risk for future returns.