Express Scripts Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ESRX)

Total Asset Turnover

The reported total asset turnover exhibited minor fluctuations over the analyzed period, starting at 1.94 in 2013, slightly declining to 1.88 in 2014, and maintaining a relatively stable level around 1.9 until 2016, before decreasing to 1.84 in 2017. The adjusted total asset turnover followed a similar pattern, with a modest decline from 1.94 in 2013 to 1.83 in 2017, indicating a slight reduction in asset efficiency over time.

Current Ratio

The reported current ratio showed a gradual improvement from 0.64 in 2013 to a peak of 0.75 in 2016, suggesting enhanced short-term liquidity during this period. However, it decreased to 0.67 in 2017, signaling a potential weakening in the company's ability to cover short-term obligations. The adjusted current ratio mirrored this trend, rising from 0.62 in 2013 to 0.76 in 2016, then declining to 0.68 in 2017.

Debt to Equity Ratio

There was a clear upward trend in the reported debt to equity ratio between 2013 and 2016, increasing from 0.64 to 0.96, indicating greater leverage and potentially higher financial risk. In 2017, this ratio decreased slightly to 0.88, suggesting some deleveraging. The adjusted debt to equity ratio likewise rose from 0.53 to 0.79 over the 2013–2016 period and remained relatively stable at 0.78 in 2017.

Debt to Capital Ratio

The reported debt to capital ratio increased from 0.39 in 2013 to 0.49 in 2016, implying a growing proportion of debt financing within the company's capital structure. It declined slightly to 0.47 in 2017. The adjusted measure showed a similar increase from 0.35 to 0.44 during the same period and remained steady at 0.44 in 2017.

Financial Leverage

Reported financial leverage rose consistently from 2.45 in 2013 to a peak of 3.19 in 2016, reflecting increased use of debt relative to equity, before decreasing to 2.99 in 2017. Adjusted financial leverage also followed this pattern, rising from 1.98 in 2013 to 2.62 in 2016 and stabilizing slightly higher at 2.63 in 2017.

Net Profit Margin

The reported net profit margin showed continuous improvement, more than doubling from 1.77% in 2013 to 4.51% in 2017, indicating enhanced profitability. The adjusted net profit margin rose from 1.36% in 2013 to 2.91% in 2016 but decreased slightly to 2.88% in 2017, suggesting adjustments for non-recurring items or other factors affected the bottom line performance.

Return on Equity (ROE)

Reported ROE demonstrated strong growth from 8.45% in 2013 to 24.93% in 2017, reflecting increased profitability relative to shareholder equity. The adjusted ROE increased from 5.23% in 2013 to 14.68% in 2016 but dipped to 13.89% in 2017, indicating that adjustments modestly moderated the return when excluding specific items.

Return on Assets (ROA)

The reported ROA also improved significantly, rising from 3.44% in 2013 to 8.33% in 2017, demonstrating better utilization of total assets to generate profit. The adjusted ROA increased from 2.64% in 2013 to 5.61% in 2016 but decreased to 5.28% in 2017, consistent with a less favorable adjustment impacting asset profitability in the final year.

Revenues

The revenues show a slight declining trend over the five-year period. Starting at approximately 104.1 billion US dollars in 2013, revenues decreased to around 100.1 billion US dollars by 2017. This indicates a modest reduction of about 4% in revenue generation from 2013 to 2017, suggesting challenges in maintaining or growing sales during this period.

Total Assets

Total assets remained relatively stable from 2013 through 2017. The value hovered around the mid-50 billion US dollars range, with minor fluctuations. There was a small dip in 2016 to approximately 51.7 billion US dollars, followed by a recovery to about 54.3 billion US dollars by year-end 2017. This stability indicates a consistent asset base with slight year-to-year adjustments.

Reported Total Asset Turnover

The reported total asset turnover ratio shows a slight downward trend from 2013 to 2017. The ratio started at 1.94 in 2013, dipped marginally over subsequent years, and ended at 1.84 in 2017. This decline implies a reduced efficiency in using assets to generate revenues, indicating that each unit of asset value produced less revenue by the end of the period compared to the start.

Adjusted Total Assets

The adjusted total assets follow a trend very similar to total assets, with values closely aligned throughout the period. They started at approximately 53.6 billion US dollars in 2013, experienced a slight decline towards 2016, and rebounded to about 54.6 billion US dollars in 2017. The adjustments do not notably alter the overall asset trend, suggesting that adjustments had minimal impact on total asset valuation.

Adjusted Total Asset Turnover

The adjusted total asset turnover ratio mirrors the pattern of the reported turnover ratio, starting at 1.94 in 2013 and declining to 1.83 by 2017. This decrease confirms the slight drop in asset utilization efficiency over time when considering adjusted assets. The similarity in trends between reported and adjusted ratios suggests consistent asset efficiency assessments regardless of adjustments.

Current Assets

The current assets displayed a generally increasing trend from 2013 through 2016, rising from $8,491,400 thousand to $12,363,400 thousand. However, in 2017, current assets experienced a slight decline to $11,957,100 thousand. This suggests a period of asset growth followed by a marginal reduction in the latest year observed.

Current Liabilities

Current liabilities increased consistently over the entire period, moving from $13,235,300 thousand in 2013 to $17,846,400 thousand in 2017. The steady rise indicates growing short-term financial obligations for the company each year.

Reported Current Ratio

The reported current ratio remained below 1.0 throughout the period, indicating current liabilities exceeding current assets. It started at 0.64 in 2013, fell slightly to 0.62 in 2014, then improved to 0.7 in 2015 and further to 0.75 in 2016 before declining to 0.67 in 2017. The trend suggests modest improvements in liquidity until 2016, followed by a deterioration in 2017.

Adjusted Current Assets

Adjusted current assets generally followed the same pattern as reported current assets, increasing steadily from 2013 to 2016, rising from $8,238,200 thousand to $12,438,400 thousand. A small decline occurred in 2017, down to $12,052,400 thousand. This reflects a similar asset composition trend after adjustments.

Adjusted Current Ratio

The adjusted current ratio mirrored the reported ratio trend, starting from 0.62 in 2013, decreasing slightly to 0.61 in 2014, then improving to 0.71 in 2015 and 0.76 in 2016 before declining to 0.68 in 2017. Overall, the company’s adjusted liquidity followed a pattern of improvement over the middle years, with a slight setback in the latest year.

Total Debt

The total debt of the company showed an overall increasing trend from 2013 to 2017. It increased from $13,947 million in 2013 to $16,014 million in 2017, with a slight dip observed in 2014 before rising again in subsequent years. The peak was close to $16,000 million in 2017, indicating a growing leverage position over the period.

Total Express Scripts Stockholders’ Equity

Stockholders’ equity experienced a declining trend from 2013 through 2016, decreasing from $21,837 million in 2013 to $16,236 million in 2016. However, in 2017, the equity rebounded slightly to $18,120 million. The decline in equity coupled with rising debt suggests a reduction in net assets available to shareholders during the earlier years, partially recovering in 2017.

Reported Debt to Equity Ratio

The reported debt to equity ratio increased from 0.64 in 2013 to a high of 0.96 in 2016, reflecting increasing financial leverage and potentially higher financial risk. In 2017, this ratio declined to 0.88, indicating a marginal reduction in leverage relative to equity compared to the prior year, but still significantly elevated relative to 2013 levels.

Adjusted Total Debt

The adjusted total debt follows a similar increasing pattern as the reported total debt. It rose from approximately $14,269 million in 2013 to $16,251 million in 2017, showing a steady rise and confirming the trend of increasing debt obligations under adjusted metrics.

Adjusted Total Stockholders’ Equity

Adjusted equity decreased substantially from $27,032 million in 2013 to $19,891 million in 2016, indicating a notable reduction in adjusted net assets. A slight increase to $20,753 million is seen in 2017, mirroring the trend in reported equity but consistently higher in magnitude due to adjustment effects.

Adjusted Debt to Equity Ratio

The adjusted debt to equity ratio increased from 0.53 in 2013 to 0.79 in 2016, then remained relatively stable at 0.78 in 2017. This consistent rise suggests a growing proportion of debt relative to adjusted equity, indicative of progressively rising financial leverage and potential credit risk over the five-year period.

The financial data reveals several notable trends regarding debt and capital structure over the five-year period.

Total Debt

Total debt values show a steady increase from 13,947,000 thousand US dollars at the end of 2013 to 16,014,400 thousand US dollars by the end of 2017. This indicates a gradual rise in the company's borrowing or liabilities during the period.

Total Capital

Total capital experienced a decline from 35,784,400 thousand US dollars in 2013 to a low point of 31,804,300 thousand US dollars in 2016, before recovering to 34,134,000 thousand US dollars in 2017. This trend suggests some contraction in the total financing base until 2016, followed by a partial recovery.

Reported Debt to Capital Ratio

The reported debt to capital ratio rose from 0.39 in 2013 to a peak of 0.49 in 2016, indicating an increasing reliance on debt relative to total capital. The ratio slightly decreased to 0.47 in 2017, signaling a modest improvement in the capital structure.

Adjusted Total Debt

Adjusted total debt mirrors the trend of total debt, increasing from 14,268,730 thousand US dollars in 2013 to 16,251,352 thousand US dollars in 2017. The adjustments result in slightly higher debt figures, reflecting possibly additional liabilities or recalculations.

Adjusted Total Capital

Adjusted total capital declines consistently from 41,300,930 thousand US dollars in 2013 to 35,700,043 thousand US dollars in 2016, then increases to 37,004,252 thousand US dollars in 2017. This downward trend followed by a recovery parallels the unadjusted figures but at higher absolute values.

Adjusted Debt to Capital Ratio

The adjusted debt to capital ratio shows an upward trajectory from 0.35 in 2013 to 0.44 in both 2016 and 2017. This suggests an increasing proportion of debt within the capital structure after adjustments, with stabilization observed in the last two years.

Overall, the data points to a gradual increase in debt levels accompanied by a contraction and then partial rebound in total capital. Both reported and adjusted debt-to-capital ratios reveal a growing dependence on debt financing, which appears to stabilize towards the end of the period. The adjustments consistently raise debt and capital values but maintain similar trend patterns, reinforcing the interpretation of an increasing leverage profile over the analyzed years.

Total Assets

Total assets showed a relatively stable trend over the five-year period, beginning at 53.5 billion US dollars in 2013 and ending slightly higher at 54.3 billion US dollars in 2017. However, there was a slight decline observed in 2016 to 51.7 billion US dollars before recovering in 2017. The adjusted total assets mirrored this pattern, demonstrating a small dip in 2016 and a recovery afterward.

Total Stockholders’ Equity

Reported total stockholders’ equity exhibited a consistent downward trend from 21.8 billion US dollars in 2013 to a low of 16.2 billion US dollars in 2016, before a modest recovery to 18.1 billion US dollars in 2017. The adjusted total stockholders’ equity followed a similar trajectory, decreasing steadily over the period, moving from 27.0 billion US dollars in 2013 to 20.8 billion US dollars in 2017.

Reported Financial Leverage

The reported financial leverage ratio increased progressively from 2.45 in 2013 to a peak of 3.19 in 2016, indicating a growing reliance on debt relative to equity during this period. In 2017, the ratio slightly decreased to 2.99, suggesting a partial deleveraging or equity improvement.

Adjusted Financial Leverage

The adjusted financial leverage ratio showed an upward trend from 1.98 in 2013 to 2.63 in 2017, increasing steadily and reflecting a rising proportion of adjusted total assets to adjusted stockholders’ equity. Unlike the reported leverage, the adjusted leverage did not decline in 2017 but maintained an increasing trend.

General Insights

Over the five-year period, the company experienced slight fluctuations in total assets but a general decline in stockholders’ equity, leading to an increase in financial leverage. The rising leverage ratios indicate increased financial risk, as more assets were financed through debt rather than equity. Although a modest recovery in reported equity and a slight reduction in reported leverage were observed in 2017, the adjusted leverage ratio continued to rise. This suggests that, when considering adjustments, the company may still be on a path of increasing leverage.

The financial data reveals several noteworthy trends in profitability and revenue performance over the five-year period.

Net Income Attributable to Express Scripts

There is a consistent and substantial increase in net income from 2013 through 2017. Starting at approximately 1.84 billion US dollars in 2013, net income rose steadily each year, culminating in 4.52 billion US dollars in 2017. This represents strong growth, roughly doubling over the period.

Revenues

Revenues exhibit a slight decline over the same period. Beginning at about 104.1 billion US dollars in 2013, revenues fluctuated modestly but overall decreased to approximately 100.1 billion US dollars by 2017. The revenue levels remained relatively stable but showed a downward trend.

Reported Net Profit Margin

The reported net profit margin shows a clear upward trajectory, improving from 1.77% in 2013 to 4.51% in 2017. This indicates a significant enhancement in profitability relative to revenues over the period, suggesting improved operational efficiency or cost management.

Adjusted Net Income

Adjusted net income also increased through the years, rising from about 1.42 billion US dollars in 2013 to a peak of 2.92 billion US dollars in 2016, before slightly declining to 2.88 billion US dollars in 2017. The growth up to 2016 indicates improving earnings quality, although the small decrease in 2017 might warrant further examination.

Adjusted Net Profit Margin

The adjusted net profit margin follows a similar trend to adjusted net income, increasing steadily from 1.36% in 2013 to 2.91% in 2016, then slightly declining to 2.88% in 2017. The margins suggest enhanced profitability on an adjusted basis over most of the period but a slight retraction in the final year.

Overall, the data presents a picture of rising profitability despite stable or slightly decreasing revenues. The improvement in both reported and adjusted net profit margins indicates effective management of costs and possibly an improved business model or pricing strategy. The moderate decline in adjusted earnings and margins in the final year may merit focused analysis to understand underlying causes.

The analysis of the annual financial data reveals several important trends related to profitability and equity for the period from 2013 to 2017.

Net Income Attributable to Express Scripts

There is a consistent upward trend in net income over the five-year period. The net income increased from 1,844,600 thousand USD in 2013 to 4,517,400 thousand USD in 2017, showing a more than twofold increase. This indicates a strong growth in the company’s earnings capacity.

Total Express Scripts Stockholders’ Equity

The total stockholders' equity demonstrates a downward trajectory from 21,837,400 thousand USD in 2013 to 16,236,000 thousand USD in 2016. However, in 2017, equity shows a moderate recovery, increasing to 18,119,600 thousand USD. This suggests that while the company was reducing equity for most of the period, possibly through share repurchase or distributions, it started rebuilding equity toward the end of the period.

Reported Return on Equity (ROE)

The reported ROE increases substantially each year, beginning at 8.45% in 2013 and rising sharply to 24.93% in 2017. This reflected improvement in generating returns on the equity base, with significant acceleration particularly from 2015 onward, highlighting enhanced profitability relative to reported equity.

Adjusted Net Income

The adjusted net income shows a growth trend similar to reported net income but with some fluctuations in growth pace. It rose from 1,415,100 thousand USD in 2013 to a peak of 2,919,600 thousand USD in 2016, followed by a slight decline to 2,882,500 thousand USD in 2017. This indicates that non-recurring or adjusting factors might have affected the income especially in the last year.

Adjusted Total Stockholders’ Equity

The adjusted equity values follow a downward trend from 27,032,200 thousand USD in 2013 to 19,891,000 thousand USD in 2016, similar to the reported equity pattern, before a modest increase to 20,752,900 thousand USD in 2017. This steady decrease could point to capital returns or asset adjustments impacting equity levels.

Adjusted ROE

Adjusted ROE rises steadily from 5.23% in 2013 to a peak of 14.68% in 2016, but then decreases slightly to 13.89% in 2017. The rise in adjusted ROE aligns with growth in adjusted net income and the reduction in adjusted equity, while the dip in 2017 may reflect the slight fall in adjusted net income despite the equity increase.

Overall, the data reveal a substantial improvement in profitability with reported and adjusted net incomes rising significantly. The company achieved higher returns on equity due to robust earnings growth and reduced equity bases. While equity generally decreased during the period, a slight recovery in 2017 may signal a strategic shift. The minor divergence between reported and adjusted figures in 2017 suggests the presence of adjustments affecting comparability across years.

Net Income Attributable to Express Scripts

The net income showed a consistent upward trend over the five-year period, increasing from $1,844,600 thousand in 2013 to $4,517,400 thousand in 2017. This represents a strong growth trajectory, with particularly significant increases observed between 2015 and 2017.

Total Assets

Total assets remained relatively stable throughout the analysis period, fluctuating within a narrow range around $53,000,000 to $54,000,000 thousand. The value peaked in 2014 at approximately $53,798,900 thousand before slightly declining and then rising again by 2017 to $54,255,800 thousand.

Reported Return on Assets (ROA)

The reported ROA demonstrated a clear improvement from 3.44% in 2013 to 8.33% in 2017. This increase aligns with the rising net income and indicates enhanced profitability relative to the asset base. The most pronounced growth occurred in the latter years, reflecting stronger operational efficiency or asset utilization.

Adjusted Net Income

Adjusted net income generally trended upward, moving from $1,415,100 thousand in 2013 to $2,882,500 thousand in 2017. However, there was a notable peak in 2016 at $2,919,600 thousand, followed by a slight decrease in 2017. This suggests some variability in adjustments or one-time items influencing income.

Adjusted Total Assets

Adjusted total assets displayed a pattern similar to reported total assets, remaining relatively constant with minor fluctuations. Values ranged from approximately $53,616,730 thousand in 2013 to $54,557,952 thousand in 2017, with a small dip in 2016.

Adjusted Return on Assets (ROA)

The adjusted ROA increased steadily from 2.64% in 2013 to a peak of 5.61% in 2016, followed by a slight decline to 5.28% in 2017. This trend mirrors the adjusted net income pattern and suggests that adjusted profitability improved over the period but experienced a minor setback in the final year observed.