Operating Profitability
Operating profit is "a measure of a company 's earning power from ongoing operations, equal to earnings before deduction of interest payments and income taxes, also called EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) or operating income" (Inverstorwords.com, 2007). The formula for operating profit is: operating profit = operating revenue operating expenses. In January of 2005, Dell reported that EBIT was $4,445 million and in 2006 it was $4,574 million, a 2.9% increase (Forbes.com LLC, 2007b). Alternatively, in 2005 Apple reported on EBIT of $1,815 million and in 2006, $2,818 million, a 55.26% increase (Forbes.com LLC, 2007a). These results indicate that Dell is more successful; however, Apple is rapidly and dramatically increasing their operating profitability. Tables 1 through 4 display the four most commonly used ratios for operating profitability.
Asset Utilization
Asset utilization is vital to the success of an organization, and Dell and Apple both utilize capital equipment to manage their manufacturing and distribution operations. Dell is more streamlined in their operation while Apple has more assets. "Asset performance is typically used to compare one company 's performance over time or against its competition. Possessing strong asset performance is one
References: Brealey, R.A., Myers, S.C, & Marcus, A.J. (2004). Fundamentals of Corporate Finance (4e). New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Retrieved June 27, 2007 from: https://mycampus.phoenix.edu/secure/resource/resource.asp Dell Inc Forbes.com LLC. (2007a). Apple, Incorporated. Retrieved June 27, 2007 from: http://finapps.forbes.com/finapps/jsp/finance/compinfo/IncomeStatement.jsp?tkr=AAPL Forbes.com LLC Google Finance. (2007a). Apple Inc. Retrieved June 27, 2007 from: http://finance.google.com/finance?fstype=ii&q=AAPL Google Finance Investopedia ULC. (2007a). Operating margin. Retrieved June 27, 2007 from: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/o/operatingmargin.asp Investopedia ULC Investopedia ULC. (2007c). Profit margin. Retrieved June 29, 2007 from: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/profitmargin.asp Investopedia ULC Investopedia ULC. (2007e). Return on equity-ROE. Retrieved June 29, 2007 from: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/returnonequity.asp Investopedia ULC Investopedia ULC. (2007g). Average collection period. Retrieved June 29, 2007 from: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/average_collection_period.asp Investopedia ULC Investopedia ULC. (2007i). Debt ratio. Retrieved June 29, 2007 from: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/debtratio.asp Investopedia ULC Investopedia ULC. (2007k). Asset performance. Retrieved June 29, 2007 from: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/tie.asp InvestorWords.com (2007) Operating profit