Return on assets (ROA)
How much profit is generated per unit of the company's total assets.
Formula
ROA = \frac{\text{Net income}}{\text{Total assets}}Trailing twelve-month profit over the balance sheet total. Stored as a fraction.
How to read the number
Unlike ROE, ROA cannot be improved simply by borrowing: the denominator grows along with the cash.
When the metric lies
ROA is not comparable across industries: a bank's assets are the loans it issued, a retailer's are its stores. Comparing the two numbers means nothing.
Where it is used
The metric is calculated across every security in the catalogue and appears on the instrument card, in the multiples table and in the screener.
Also known as: return on assets, roa