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There are a number of ratios I think are interesting, but generally I start with return on assets (ROA). Return on Assets is Net Income divided by Total Assets. So there's the most important piece of information from the income statement and the most important piece of information from the balance sheet.

Then I look at the ROA and how it compares to the industry benchmark and to previous periods. If the ROA is slipping, I look at the components that comprise ROA.

Net Profit Margin is Net Income/Sales

Total Asset Turnover is Sales/Total Assets

If those two items are multiplied, the Sales items would cancel out and you are left with Net Income/Total Assets. In other words, ROA is Net Profit Margin x Total Asset Turnover.

So if a company has a Return on Assets problem, it is a Net Profit Margin problem, a Total Asset Turnover Problem. So I check Net Profit Margin and Total Asset Turnover to try to isolate the problem quickly.

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10y ago

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