As investors, we need to understand how our companies truly make their money. A neat trick developed for just that purpose -- the DuPont Formula -- can help us do so.

The DuPont Formula can give you a better grasp on exactly where your company is producing its profit, and where it might have a competitive advantage. Named after the company where it was pioneered, the formula breaks down return on equity into three components:

Return on equity = net margin x asset turnover x leverage ratio

What makes each of these components important?

  • High net margins show that a company can get customers to pay more for its products. Luxury-goods companies provide a great example here.
  • High asset turnover indicates that a company needs to invest less of its capital, since it uses its assets more efficiently to generate sales. Service industries, for instance, often lack big capital investments.
  • Finally, the leverage ratio shows how much the company is relying on liabilities to create its profits.

Generally, the higher these numbers, the better. That said, too much debt can sink a company, so beware of companies with very high leverage ratios.

Let's see what the DuPont Formula can tell us about Bridgepoint Education (NYSE: BPI) and a few of its sector and industry peers:

Company

Return on Equity

Net Margin

Asset Turnover

Leverage Ratio

Bridgepoint Education

67.0%

19.3%

1.71

2.03

Apollo Group (Nasdaq: APOL)

24.4%

7.9%

1.63

2.25

Corinthian Colleges (Nasdaq: COCO)

(13.3%)

(4.2%)

1.73

1.83

ITT Educational Services (NYSE: ESI)

315.4%

23.3%

2.31

5.84

Source: Capital IQ, a division of Standard & Poor's.

With one exception, the returns on equity here are pretty attractive. ITT manages to lead this pack, and focuses on high margin, asset turnover, and leverage to achieve an eye-popping ROE. Asset turnover and leverage at the other players are in a somewhat narrow band, meaning net margin will be an even more important determinant of ROE. While much smaller than Apollo, Bridgepoint achieves attractive ROE through high margins, and Corinthian's negative margins pull its ROE into the minus column. While some of these numbers look good, the industry is subject to huge regulatory change, potentially hurting margins, so be sure to investigate that before you invest.

Using the DuPont Formula can often give you insight into how a company is competing against peers and what type of strategy it's using to juice return on equity. To find more successful investments, dig deeper than the earnings headlines. If you'd like to add these companies to your watchlist, or set up a new one, just click here.