Definition of 'Return On Assets - ROA'

An indicator of how profitable a company is relative to its total assets. ROA gives an idea as to how efficient management is at using its assets to generate earnings. Calculated by dividing a company's annual earnings by its total assets, ROA is displayed as a percentage. Sometimes this is referred to as "return on investment". The formula for return on assets is:

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Definition of 'Return On Equity - ROE'

The amount of net income returned as a percentage of shareholders equity. Return on equity measures a corporation's profitability by revealing how much profit a company generates with the money shareholders have invested. ROE is expressed as a percentage and calculated as: Return on Equity = Net Income/Shareholder's Equity Net income is for the full fiscal year (before dividends paid to common stock holders but after dividends to preferred stock.) Shareholder's equity does not include preferred shares. Also known as "return on net worth" (RONW). Read more: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/returnonequity.asp#ixzz2NWmeSK00

Definition of 'Dividend Per Share - DPS'

The the sum of declared dividends for every ordinary share issued. Dividend per share (DPS) is the total dividends paid out over an entire year (including interim dividends but not including special dividends) divided by the number of outstanding ordinary shares issued. DPS can be calculated by using the following formula:

D - Sum of dividends over a period (usually 1 year) SD - Special, one time dividends

S - Shares outstanding for the period

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The formula shown is for a simple straight preferred stock that does not have additional features, such as those found in convertible, retractable, and callable preferred stocks. A preferred stock is a type of stock that provides dividends prior to any dividend paid to common stocks. Apart from having preference for dividend payouts, preferred stocks generally will have preference of asset allocation upon insolvency of the company, compared to common stocks. Because of these preferences, preferred stock is generally considered to be more secure than common stock and similar to a debt financial instrument, i.e., a bond. Despite the similarities, bonds do have preference for the same reasons and are generally considered more secure, ceteris paribus. The formula for the present value of a preferred stock uses the perpetuity formula. A perpetuity is a type of annuity that pays periodic payments infinitely. As previously stated, preferred stocks in most circumstances receive their dividends prior to any dividends paid to common stocks and the dividends tend to be fixed. With this, its value can be calculated using the perpetuity formula.

Definition of 'Common Stock'

A security that represents ownership in a corporation. Holders of common stock exercise control by electing a board of directors and voting on corporate policy. Common stockholders are on the bottom of the priority ladder for ownership structure. In the event of liquidation, common shareholders have rights to a company's assets only after bondholders, preferred shareholders and other debtholders have been paid in full. In the U.K., these are called "ordinary shares."

Investopedia explains 'Common Stock'

If the company goes bankrupt, the common stockholders will not receive their money until the creditors and preferred shareholders have received their respective share of the leftover assets. This makes common stock riskier than debt or preferred shares. The upside to common shares is that they usually outperform bonds and preferred shares in the long run.
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