Benzinga | Sep 29, 2021 10:34AM EDT

Looking Into Babcock & Wilcox's Return On Invested Capital

According to Benzinga Pro, during Q2, Babcock & Wilcox (NYSE:BW) earned $2.82 million, a 133.33% increase from the preceding quarter. Babcock & Wilcox also posted a total of $202.90 million in sales, a 20.63% increase since Q1. In Q1, Babcock & Wilcox brought in $168.20 million in sales but lost $8.47 million in earnings.

What Is ROIC?

Return on Invested Capital is a measure of yearly pre-tax profit relative to capital invested by a business. Changes in earnings and sales indicate shifts in a company's ROIC. A higher ROIC is generally representative of successful growth of a company and is a sign of higher earnings per share in the future. A low or negative ROIC suggests the opposite. In Q2, Babcock & Wilcox posted an ROIC of 3.39%.

Keep in mind, while ROIC is a good measure of a company's recent performance, it is not a highly reliable predictor of a company's earnings or sales in the near future.

Earnings data without context is not clear and can difficult to base trading decisions on. Return on Invested Capital (ROIC) helps to filter signal from noise by measuring yearly pre-tax profit relative to invested capital by a business. Generally, a higher ROIC suggests successful growth of a company and is a sign of higher earnings per share in the future. In Q2, Babcock & Wilcox posted an ROIC of 3.39%.

It is important to keep in mind that ROIC evaluates past performance and is not used as a predictive tool. It is a good measure of a company's recent performance, but does not account for factors that could affect earnings and sales in the near future.

For Babcock & Wilcox, the positive return on invested capital ratio of 3.39% suggests that management is allocating their capital effectively. Effective capital allocation is a positive indicator that a company will achieve more durable success and favorable long-term returns.

Analyst Predictions

Babcock & Wilcox reported Q2 earnings per share at $0.02/share, which did not meet analyst predictions of $0.04/share.