Retained earnings is the accumulated portion of net income that is not distributed to shareholders. General Mills's retained earnings for the quarter that ended in Feb. 2022 was $17,713 Mil.
General Mills's quarterly retained earnings
declined
from Aug. 2021 ($17,385 Mil) to Nov. 2021 ($17,363 Mil) but then
increased
from Nov. 2021 ($17,363 Mil) to Feb. 2022 ($17,713 Mil).
General Mills's annual retained earnings
increased
from May. 2019 ($14,997 Mil) to May. 2020 ($15,982 Mil) and
increased
from May. 2020 ($15,982 Mil) to May. 2021 ($17,070 Mil).
General Mills Retained Earnings Calculation
Retained Earnings is the accumulated portion of net income that is not distributed to shareholders. Because the net income was not distributed to shareholders, shareholders' equity is increased by the same amount.
Of course, if a company loses, it is called retained losses, or accumulated losses.
General Mills (NYSE:GIS) Retained Earnings Explanation
Historically profitable companies sometimes have negative retained earnings. This is because they have cumulatively paid out more to shareholders than they reported in profits.
For example, in 2011, Microsoft had negative retained earnings. This does not mean the company lost more money than it made over the years. It just means it paid out more money than it earned.
If a company has negative retained earnings, investors should check the 10-year financial results. They should not assume that negative retained earnings prove a company has generally lost money in the past.
Of course, many companies with negative retained earnings have indeed lost money in the past.
Retained Earnings: Warren Buffett's Secret.
One of the most important indicators of durable competitive advantage. Net earnings can be paid out as dividends, used to buy back shares or retained for growth.
If the company loses more than it has accumulated, retained earnings is negative.
If a company isn't adding to its retained earnings, it isn't growing its net worth.
Rate of growth of retained earnings is good indicator whether it's benefiting from a competitive advantage.
Microsoft is negative because it chose to buyback stock and pay dividends.
The more earnings retained, the faster it grows and increases growth rate for future earnings.
My Portfolios
Create New Portfolio
Portfolio Contest
My Gurus
Personalize
Premium Gurus 
0.43(0.62%) Volume: 2,667,586 4:00PM EDT
Email Alerts
Stock PDF
RSS
Website
Filings
Download
Manual of Stocks™ Web APP
NYSE:GIS has been successfully added to your 
