Westwood Holdings Group Stock Beneish M Score

WHG Stock  USD 15.99  0.06  0.37%   
This module uses fundamental data of Westwood Holdings to approximate the value of its Beneish M Score. Westwood Holdings M Score tells investors if the company management is likely to be manipulating earnings. The score is calculated using eight financial indicators that are adjusted by a specific multiplier. Please note, the M Score is a probabilistic model and cannot detect companies that manipulate their earnings with 100% accuracy. Check out Westwood Holdings Piotroski F Score and Westwood Holdings Altman Z Score analysis.
  
At this time, Westwood Holdings' Debt To Assets are most likely to increase slightly in the upcoming years. The Westwood Holdings' current Long Term Debt To Capitalization is estimated to increase to 0.05, while Short Term Debt is projected to decrease to roughly 2 M. At this time, Westwood Holdings' POCF Ratio is most likely to decrease significantly in the upcoming years. The Westwood Holdings' current Payout Ratio is estimated to increase to 2.58, while Dividend Yield is projected to decrease to 0.04.
At this time, it appears that Westwood Holdings is an unlikely manipulator. The earnings manipulation may begin if Westwood Holdings' top management creates an artificial sense of financial success, forcing the stock price to be traded at a high price-earnings multiple than it should be. In general, excessive earnings management by Westwood Holdings executives may lead to removing some of the operating profits from subsequent periods to inflate earnings in the following periods. This way, the manipulation of Westwood Holdings' earnings can lead to misrepresentations of actual financial condition, taking the otherwise loyal stakeholders on to the path of questionable ethical practices and plain fraud.
-3.37
Beneish M Score - Unlikely Manipulator
Elasticity of Receivables

1.02

Focus
Asset Quality

0.46

Focus
Expense Coverage

1.28

Focus
Gross Margin Strengs

1.22

Focus
Accruals Factor

1.28

Focus
Depreciation Resistance

1.07

Focus
Net Sales Growth

0.77

Focus
Financial Leverage Condition

0.28

Focus

Westwood Holdings Beneish M-Score Indicator Trends

The cure to earnings manipulation is the transparency of financial reporting. It will typically remove the temptation of the top executives to inflate earnings (i.e., to promote the idea of 'winning at any cost'). Because a healthy internal audit department can enhance transparency, the board should promote the auditors' access to all the record-keeping systems across the enterprise. For example, if Westwood Holdings' auditors report directly to the board (not management), the managers will be reluctant to manipulate simply due to the fear of punishment. On the other hand, the auditors will be free to investigate the ledgers properly because they know that the board has their back.
Current ValueLast YearChange From Last Year 10 Year Trend
Net Receivables11.7 M14.7 M
Significantly Down
Pretty Stable
Total Revenue73.2 M94.7 M
Significantly Down
Very volatile
Total Assets110 M150 M
Way Down
Slightly volatile
Total Current Assets77.8 M61.3 M
Significantly Up
Very volatile
Non Current Assets Total93.1 M88.7 M
Sufficiently Up
Slightly volatile
Property Plant Equipment8.2 M7.8 M
Sufficiently Up
Slightly volatile
Depreciation And Amortization4.5 M4.8 M
Notably Down
Slightly volatile
Selling General Administrative17.3 M17.4 M
Slightly Down
Very volatile
Total Current Liabilities17.9 M23 M
Significantly Down
Very volatile
Non Current Liabilities TotalM4.7 M
Fairly Down
Slightly volatile
Short Term Investments44.5 M27.7 M
Way Up
Pretty Stable
Long Term Investments12.5 M15 M
Significantly Down
Slightly volatile
Gross Profit Margin0.50.4087
Fairly Up
Slightly volatile

Westwood Holdings Beneish M-Score Driver Matrix

One of the toughest challenges investors face today is learning how to quickly synthesize historical financial statements and information provided by the company, SEC reporting, and various external parties in order to detect the potential manipulation of earnings. Understanding the correlation between Westwood Holdings' different financial indicators related to revenue, expenses, operating profit, and net earnings helps investors identify and prioritize their investing strategies towards Westwood Holdings in a much-optimized way. Analyzing correlations between earnings drivers directly associated with dollar figures is the most effective way to find Westwood Holdings' degree of accounting gimmicks and manipulations.

About Westwood Holdings Beneish M Score

M-Score is one of many grading techniques for value stocks. It was developed by Professor M. Daniel Beneish of the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University and published in 1999 under the paper titled The Detection of Earnings Manipulation. The Beneish score is a multi-factor model that utilizes financial identifiers to compile eight variables used to classify whether a company has manipulated its reported earnings. The variables are built from the officially filed financial statements to create a final score call 'M Score.' The score helps to identify companies that are likely to manipulate their profits if they show deteriorating gross margins, operating expenses, and leverage against growing revenue.

Other Operating Expenses

56.22 Million

At this time, Westwood Holdings' Other Operating Expenses is most likely to increase significantly in the upcoming years.

Westwood Holdings Earnings Manipulation Drivers

Although earnings manipulation is typically not the result of intentional misconduct by the c-level executives, it is still a widespread practice by the senior management of public companies such as Westwood Holdings. It is usually done by a series of misrepresentations of various accounting rules and operating activities across multiple financial cycles. The best way to spot the manipulation is to examine the historical financial statement to find inconsistencies in earning reports to find trends in assets or liabilities that are not sustainable in the future.
202020212022202320242025 (projected)
Net Receivables11.2M11.4M13.9M14.4M14.7M11.7M
Total Revenue65.1M73.1M68.7M89.8M94.7M73.2M
Total Assets149.2M139.6M146.3M155.2M150.0M110.0M
Total Current Assets96.3M93.9M58.0M72.2M61.3M77.8M
Net Debt(5.2M)(9.1M)(17.8M)(15.9M)(15.7M)(16.4M)
Short Term Debt3.4M2.8M3.0M1.3M3.2M2.0M
Operating Income5.3M(1.5M)10.5M6.0M830K788.5K
Investments(4K)9.2M(34.1M)(29.5M)(4.6M)(4.8M)

Westwood Holdings ESG Sustainability

Some studies have found that companies with high sustainability scores are getting higher valuations than competitors with lower social-engagement activities. While most ESG disclosures are voluntary and do not directly affect the long term financial condition, Westwood Holdings' sustainability indicators can be used to identify proper investment strategies using environmental, social, and governance scores that are crucial to Westwood Holdings' managers, analysts, and investors.
Environmental
Governance
Social

About Westwood Holdings Fundamental Analysis

The Macroaxis Fundamental Analysis modules help investors analyze Westwood Holdings Group's financials across various querterly and yearly statements, indicators and fundamental ratios. We help investors to determine the real value of Westwood Holdings using virtually all public information available. We use both quantitative as well as qualitative analysis to arrive at the intrinsic value of Westwood Holdings Group based on its fundamental data. In general, a quantitative approach, as applied to this company, focuses on analyzing financial statements comparatively, whereas a qaualitative method uses data that is important to a company's growth but cannot be measured and presented in a numerical way.
Please read more on our fundamental analysis page.

Currently Active Assets on Macroaxis

When determining whether Westwood Holdings is a strong investment it is important to analyze Westwood Holdings' competitive position within its industry, examining market share, product or service uniqueness, and competitive advantages. Beyond financials and market position, potential investors should also consider broader economic conditions, industry trends, and any regulatory or geopolitical factors that may impact Westwood Holdings' future performance. For an informed investment choice regarding Westwood Stock, refer to the following important reports:
Check out Westwood Holdings Piotroski F Score and Westwood Holdings Altman Z Score analysis.
You can also try the Equity Forecasting module to use basic forecasting models to generate price predictions and determine price momentum.
Is Asset Management & Custody Banks space expected to grow? Or is there an opportunity to expand the business' product line in the future? Factors like these will boost the valuation of Westwood Holdings. If investors know Westwood will grow in the future, the company's valuation will be higher. The financial industry is built on trying to define current growth potential and future valuation accurately. All the valuation information about Westwood Holdings listed above have to be considered, but the key to understanding future value is determining which factors weigh more heavily than others.
Quarterly Earnings Growth
(0.98)
Dividend Share
0.6
Earnings Share
0.33
Revenue Per Share
11.393
Quarterly Revenue Growth
0.084
The market value of Westwood Holdings is measured differently than its book value, which is the value of Westwood that is recorded on the company's balance sheet. Investors also form their own opinion of Westwood Holdings' value that differs from its market value or its book value, called intrinsic value, which is Westwood Holdings' true underlying value. Investors use various methods to calculate intrinsic value and buy a stock when its market value falls below its intrinsic value. Because Westwood Holdings' market value can be influenced by many factors that don't directly affect Westwood Holdings' underlying business (such as a pandemic or basic market pessimism), market value can vary widely from intrinsic value.
Please note, there is a significant difference between Westwood Holdings' value and its price as these two are different measures arrived at by different means. Investors typically determine if Westwood Holdings is a good investment by looking at such factors as earnings, sales, fundamental and technical indicators, competition as well as analyst projections. However, Westwood Holdings' price is the amount at which it trades on the open market and represents the number that a seller and buyer find agreeable to each party.