Reebok & La Gear Analysis of Two Very Different Companies Essay

6. How does Chem-Med 's retum -on- equity ratio (ROE) compare to Pharmacia 's and the industry for 2003? Using the Du Pont method, compare the positions of Chem-Med and Pharmacia. Compute ROE for each company using the following formula:

1. ROE 2.25% - If this ROE went up it means Speedster Athletics is improving on generating profit from assets (without requiring as much debt) and have a better competitive advantage by creating more wealth to shareholders. If ROE went down Speedster is financially over leveraged may have been making high risk investments which is impacting stockholder value.

* Return on assets (ROA) – ROA shows how successful a company is in generating profits on the amount of assets they own. Since assets consist of debt and equity, ROA is a measure of how well a company converts investment dollars into profit. The higher the percentage, the more profit a company is generating per dollar of investment. Similar to ROS, this ratio needs to be looked at compared to the industry as different industries have different requirements that can affect ROA. For example, companies in the airline and mining industries need expensive assets to operate so will have lower ROA’s compared to companies in the pharmaceutical or advertising industries.

‘Cash and cash equivalents’ include certain short-term investments and, in some cases, bank overdrafts. Like IFRS, ‘cash and cash equivalents’ include certain shortterm investments, although not necessarily the same short-term investments as under IFRS. Unlike IFRS, bank overdrafts are considered a form of short-term financing, with changes therein classified as financing activities. The statement of cash flows presents cash flows during the period, classified by operating, investing and financing activities. Like IFRS, the statement of cash flows presents cash flows during the period, classified by operating, investing and financing activities. The separate components of a single transaction are classified as operating, investing or financing. Unlike IFRS, cash receipts and payments with attributes of more than one class of cash flows are classified based on the predominant source of the cash flows unless the underlying transaction is accounted for as having different components. Cash flows from operating activities may be presented using either the direct method or the indirect method. If the direct method is used, then an entity presents a reconciliation of profit or loss to net cash flows from operating activities; however, in our experience practice varies regarding the measure of profit or loss used. Like IFRS, cash flows from operating activities may be presented using either the direct method or the indirect method. Like IFRS, if

This ratio is similar to ROA except that it shows only the return on the resource contributed by the shareholders. Home Depot maintained steady ratio the last two years while Lowe’s has been decreasing over the past three years.

Since an ROE of 21.48% equals the product of 4.41% and 4.87 (ROA and Equity Multiplier), it indicates that the firm is able to achieve such high ROE only through a high financial leverage.

The cash flow statement shows the amount of cash within a company. Items that affect the cash balance are listed on the statement. The first section of the cash flow statement is operating activities, which shows the cash flowing in and out of the company in relation to its business operation. The operating activities section also includes net income and the change in dollars of certain accounts listed on the balance sheet. The next section, investing activities, shows cash the company received and spent on a company's capital investments. The financing activities section shows the inflows and outflows of cash related to the company’s issued financial securities, which is also listed on the balance sheet and statement of shareholders' equity.

Return on Total Assets was 4.43% which is below five percent. That indicates that the company is not accurately converting its assets into profit. The total for Return on Stockholders’ Equity was 8.89%, however financial analysts prefer ROE to range between 15-20 %. The company’s low ROE indicates that the company is not generating profit with new investments. Lastly, Debt-to-Equity ratio for the company was 1.01 which indicates that investors and creditors are equally sharing assets. In the view of creditors, they see a high ratio as a risk factor because it can indicate that investors are not investing due to the company’s overall performance. The totals of these three ratios demonstrate that the company’s financial state is not as healthy as it should be.

| The ROE decreased in the last year but still in the good margin of profitability.

The Gross profit margin stays relatively constant at around 36 %. However, there is a slight rise from 2000 to 2004.

The Net Profit Margin in 2012 was 10.5% while in 2013 it was 66.6%. This increase in the Net Profit Margin can be attributed to the increase in net profits after taxes despite the fact that there was a slight decrease in revenues.

The ROE has declined for Colgate-Palmolive from 93% in 2008 to 72% in 2010. But the debt to equity ratio has declined from

These are strike years so we will ignore them. In 1994, ROE is less than that of last three years. Overall its not good sign, but its explanation will be given in upcoming ratios.

| Below is an excerpt from the cash flow statement of a firm for fiscal year 2003: Cash flows from operating activities: Net income Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities: Depreciation and amortization Amortization of software Tax benefits of employee stock plans Special charges (Gains)/losses on investments Change in operating assets and liabilities: Receivables Inventories Pension assets Other assets Accounts payable Pension liabilities Other liabilities Net cash provided by operating activities Cash flows from investing activities: Payments for plant and other property Proceeds from disposition of plant and other property Investment in software Purchases of marketable securities and other investments Proceeds from disposition of marketable securities and other investments Net cash used in investing activities

The keys to the company’s future value and growth are profitability (ROE) and the reinvestment of retained earnings. Retained earnings are determined by dividend payout. The spreadsheet sets ROE at 15% for the five years from 2006 to 2010. If Reeby Sports will lose its competitive edge by 2011, then it cannot continue earning more than its 10% cost of capital. Therefore ROE is reduced to 10% starting in 2011.