DOW share price in focus
Downer is the leading provider of integrated infrastructure services across Australia and New Zealand, specialising in the construction, maintenance, and operation of transit systems, utility services, and public infrastructure.
While the name might not be instantly recognisable, their work is highly visible. For instance, Downer operates Melbourne’s Yarra Trams and manufactures the passenger trains you see in most states.
The company’s operations are divided into three primary segments: Transport, Utilities, and Facilities. The Transport division accounts for just over 50% of Downer’s revenue, with Utilities and Facilities contributing approximately 20% and 30% respectively.
COH shares
Cochlear is a medical device company founded in 1981 in Sydney. It designs, manufactures and distributes three different hearing implants for different medical situations.
Cochlear is a global leader in hearing devices and has provided over 750,000 implantable devices. It has over 5,000 employees throughout more than 50 countries.
Cochlear’s mission is to improve its customers’ quality of life who suffer from hearing-related conditions.
DOW & COH share price valuation
We would consider DOW to be a ‘mature’ or ‘blue-chip’ business, so some of the metrics that could be worth considering include the debt/equity ratio, average yield, and return on equity, or ROE. These measures give us a sense of the company’s debt levels, their ability to generate returns from their assets, and their ability to consistently return profits to shareholders.
For FY24, Downer EDI Ltd reported a debt/equity ratio of 81.1%, meaning the company has more equity than debt.
Over the last 5 years, DOW has delivered an average dividend yield of 3.7% per year. This is important to note if you’re looking for income from your investments.
Finally, in FY24, DOW reported an ROE of 3.6%. For a mature business you generally want to see an ROE of more than 10%, so DOW’s returns are a bit less than what we’d expect.
As more of a growth company, some of the trends we might consider for COH shares include revenue growth, profit growth, and return on equity (ROE). I say ‘trends’ because it’s always important to look at these figures over a few years. The trend is a much more valuable figure than a single measure at one point in time.
Over the last 3 years, COH has increased revenue at a rate of 14.3% per year to hit $2,236m in FY24. Meanwhile, net profit has increased from $324m to $357m. As for ROE, COH’s last reported figure was 19.9%.
Please keep in mind that context is important. These metrics give us some indication of company performance, but it’s just the start of valuing DOW or COH shares. To learn more about valuation, check out one of our free online investing courses.
