Shares of AMP Ltd (AMP.AX) are moving on volatility today -0.10% or -0.005 from the open. The ASX listed company saw a recent bid of 5.045 and 1167723 shares have traded hands in the session.
Investors may be watching the ebb and flow of the current market environment and be wondering what the next few months have in store. They may be deciding whether now is a good time to sell off some first half winners or hold on for further gains. This can be one of the toughest decisions that an investor has to make. Just because a stock has been steadily heading higher for an extended period of time doesn’t necessarily mean that it will continue to do so. Building the confidence to make the tough portfolio decisions may take some time and a few good trades under the belt. New investors may be prone to get discouraged after a few sour trades in a row. Anyone who wants to succeed in the stock market knows that there is no substitute for research and hard work. Being able to bounce back and learn from mistakes may help the investor stay in the game and get back on the road to healthy profits.
Turning to Return on Assets or ROA, AMP Ltd (AMP.AX) has a current ROA of -0.25. This is a profitability ratio that measures net income generated from total company assets during a given period. This ratio reveals how quick a company can turn it’s assets into profits. In other words, the ratio provides insight into the profitability of a firm’s assets. The ratio is calculated by dividing total net income by the average total assets.
A higher ROA compared to peers in the same industry, would suggest that company management is able to effectively generate profits from their assets. Similar to the other ratios, a lower number might raise red flags about management’s ability when compared to other companies in a similar sector.
Now let’s take a look at how the fundamentals are stacking up for AMP Ltd (AMP.AX). Fundamental analysis takes into consideration market, industry and stock conditions to help determine if the shares are correctly valued. AMP Ltd currently has a yearly EPS of -0.14. This number is derived from the total net income divided by shares outstanding. In other words, EPS reveals how profitable a company is on a share owner basis.
Another key indicator that can help investors determine if a stock might be a quality investment is the Return on Equity or ROE. AMP Ltd (AMP.AX) currently has Return on Equity of -4.31. ROE is a ratio that measures profits generated from the investments received from shareholders.
In other words, the ratio reveals how effective the firm is at turning shareholder investment into company profits. A company with high ROE typically reflects well on management and how well a company is run at a high level. A firm with a lower ROE might encourage potential investors to dig further to see why profits aren’t being generated from shareholder money.
Another ratio we can look at is the Return on Invested Capital or more commonly referred to as ROIC. AMP Ltd (AMP.AX) has a current ROIC of -2.50. ROIC is calculated by dividing Net Income - Dividends by Total Capital Invested. Similar to ROE, ROIC measures how effectively company management is using invested capital to generate company income. A high ROIC number typically reflects positively on company management while a low number typically reflects the opposite.
Investing in the stock market has traditionally offered higher returns than other types of investments. With the higher potential for returns, there is also a higher risk factor. Investors typically need to address their own personal risk situation before jumping into the market. Figuring out risk appetite can help when choosing which types of stocks to buy. Some investors will decide that they want to take a chance on certain stocks that have the potential to outperform in the future. Other investors may opt to play it safe and build a portfolio with low risk, staple stocks.
