XCOMQ (Xtera Communications) Retained Earnings: $-422.14 Mil (As of Jun. 2016)

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What is Xtera Communications Retained Earnings?

Xtera Communications XCOMQ -99.00% Retained Earnings is $-422.14 Mil as of Jun. 2016.

Retained earnings is the accumulated portion of net income that is not distributed to shareholders. Xtera Communications's retained earnings for the quarter that ended in Jun. 2016 was $-422.14 Mil.

Xtera Communications's quarterly retained earnings declined from Dec. 2015 ($-391.90 Mil) to Mar. 2016 ($-398.50 Mil) and declined from Mar. 2016 ($-398.50 Mil) to Jun. 2016 ($-422.14 Mil).

Xtera Communications's annual retained earnings declined from Sep. 2013 ($-341.94 Mil) to Sep. 2014 ($-368.05 Mil) and declined from Sep. 2014 ($-368.05 Mil) to Sep. 2015 ($-384.69 Mil).


Xtera Communications  (OTCPK:XCOMQ) 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.


Xtera Communications Retained Earnings Historical Data

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The historical data trend for Xtera Communications's Retained Earnings can be seen below:

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

Xtera Communications Retained Earnings Chart

Xtera Communications Annual Data
Trend Sep13 Sep14 Sep15
Retained Earnings
-341.94 -368.05 -384.69

Xtera Communications Quarterly Data
Sep13 Sep14 Dec14 Mar15 Jun15 Sep15 Dec15 Mar16 Jun16
Retained Earnings Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only -378.13 -384.69 -391.90 -398.50 -422.14

Xtera Communications 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.

Frequently Asked Questions Learn more about Retained Earnings →
What does a Retained Earnings of $-422.14 Mil mean?
Xtera Communications (XCOMQ) has a Retained Earnings of $-422.14 Mil as of Jun. 2016. Retained earnings is the amount of net income not issued to shareholders. View historical data on Xtera Communications and its competitors.
Is Xtera Communications' Retained Earnings too high?
Xtera Communications' current Retained Earnings is $-422.14 Mil.
How does Xtera Communications' Retained Earnings compare to TAIT and AEY?
Xtera Communications' Retained Earnings of $-422.14 Mil can be compared against companies in the Hardware industry. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Retained Earnings for a Hardware company?
A good Retained Earnings depends on the Hardware industry context. However, Retained Earnings should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Retained Earnings mean?
A high Retained Earnings can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. Retained earnings is the amount of net income not issued to shareholders. View historical data on Xtera Communications and its competitors. Xtera Communications's current Retained Earnings is $-422.14 Mil. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is Xtera Communications stock overvalued right now?
Xtera Communications (XCOMQ) has a current Retained Earnings of $-422.14 Mil. The current Retained Earnings is $-422.14 Mil. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Retained Earnings calculated?
Retained Earnings is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Xtera Communications (XCOMQ), the current Retained Earnings is $-422.14 Mil as of Jun. 2016. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.

Xtera Communications Business Description

Address 500 West Bethany Drive, Suite 100, Allen, TX, USA, 75013
Xtera Communications Inc is a provider of optical transport solutions. It sells its optical transport solutions to telecommunications service providers, content service providers, enterprises and government entities across the world to support their deployments of long-haul terrestrial and submarine optical cable networks. Its optical networking solutions are designed to offer reach and capacity for intermediate sites between end-points of long-haul networks. Its primary service offerings include services, installation and deployment services, on-site hardware replacement services, system maintenance services, extended hardware warranty services and training across a spectrum of products within the optical networking industry. The company offers hardware, software and turnkey solutions.