Question

An analysis of company performance using DuPont analysis

A sheaf of papers in her hand, your friend and colleague, Chloe, steps into your office and asked the following.

CHLOE: Do you have 10 or 15 minutes that you can spare?

YOU: Sure, I’ve got a meeting in an hour, but I don’t want to start something new and then be interrupted by the meeting, so how can I help?

CHLOE: I’ve been reviewing the company’s financial statements and looking for ways to improve our performance, in general, and the company’s return on equity, or ROE, in particular. Eric, my new team leader, suggested that I start by using a DuPont analysis, and I’d like to run my numbers and conclusions by you to see whether I’ve missed anything.

Here are the balance sheet and income statement data that Eric gave me, and here are my notes with my calculations. Could you start by making sure that my numbers are correct?

YOU: Give me a minute to look at these financial statements and to remember what I know about the DuPont analysis.

Balance Sheet Data				Income Statement Data
Cash	$1,000,000	Accounts payable	$1,200,000	Sales	$20,000,000
Accounts receivable	2,000,000	Accruals	400,000	Cost of goods sold	12,000,000
Inventory	3,000,000	Notes payable	1,600,000	Gross profit	8,000,000
Current assets	6,000,000	Current liabilities	3,200,000	Operating expenses	5,000,000
		Long-term debt	4,500,000	EBIT	3,000,000
		Total liabilities	7,700,000	Interest expense	732,000
		Common stock	1,575,000	EBT	2,268,000
Net fixed assets	8,000,000	Retained earnings	4,725,000	Taxes	567,000
		Total equity	6,300,000	Net income	$1,701,000
Total assets	$14,000,000	Total debt and equity	$14,000,000

If I remember correctly, the DuPont equation breaks down our ROE into three component ratios: the   , the total asset turnover ratio, and the   .

And, according to my understanding of the DuPont equation and its calculation of ROE, the three ratios provide insights into the company’s   , effectiveness in using the company’s assets, and   .

Now, let’s see your notes with your ratios, and then we can talk about possible strategies that will improve the ratios. I’m going to check the box to the side of your calculated value if your calculation is correct and leave it unchecked if your calculation is incorrect.

Hydra Cosmetics Inc. DuPont Analysis

Ratios	Value	Correct/Incorrect	Ratios	Value	Correct/Incorrect
Profitability ratios			Asset management ratio
Gross profit margin (%)	40.00		Total assets turnover	1.43
Operating profit margin (%)	11.34
Net profit margin (%)	12.15		Financial ratios
Return on equity (%)	31.62		Equity multiplier	1.82

CHLOE: OK, it looks like I’ve got a couple of incorrect values, so show me your calculations, and then we can talk strategies for improvement.

YOU: I’ve just made rough calculations, so let me complete this table by inputting the components of each ratio and its value:

Do not round intermediate calculations and round your final answers up to two decimals.

Hydra Cosmetics Inc. DuPont Analysis

Ratios	Calculation				Value
Profitability ratios	Numerator		Denominator
Gross profit margin (%)		/		=
Operating profit margin (%)		/		=
Net profit margin (%)		/		=
Return on equity (%)		/		=
Asset management ratio
Total assets turnover		/		=
Financial ratios
Equity multiplier		/		=

CHLOE: I see what I did wrong in my computations. Thanks for reviewing these calculations with me. You saved me from a lot of embarrassment! Eric would have been very disappointed in me if I had showed him my original work.

So, now let’s switch topics and identify general strategies that could be used to positively affect Hydra’s ROE.

YOU: OK, so given your knowledge of the component ratios used in the DuPont equation, which of the following strategies should improve the company’s ROE?

Check all that apply.

Increase the interest rate on its notes payable or long-term debt obligations because it will reduce the company’s net profit margin.

Increase the firm’s bottom-line profitability for the same volume of sales, which will increase the company’s net profit margin.

Decrease the company’s use of debt capital because it will decrease the equity multiplier.

Use more debt financing in its capital structure and increase the equity multiplier.

CHLOE: I think I understand now. Thanks for taking the time to go over this with me, and let me know when I can return the favor.

Answer 1