Return On Sales Research Articles

Quench protection for high-temperature superconductor cables using active control of current distribution

Superconducting magnets of future fusion reactors are expected to rely on composite high-temperature superconductor (HTS) cable conductors. In presently used HTS cables, current sharing between components is limited due to poorly defined contact resistances between superconducting tapes or by design. The interplay between contact and termination resistances is the defining factor for power dissipation in these cables and ultimately defines their safe operational margins. However, the current distribution between components along the composite conductor and inside its terminations is a priori unknown, and presently, no means are available to actively tune current flow distribution in real-time to improve margins of quench protection. Also, the lack of ability to electrically probe individual components makes it impossible to identify conductor damage locations within the cable. In this work, we address both problems by introducing active current control of current distribution between components using cryogenically operated metal-oxide-semiconductor-field-effect transistors (MOSFETs). We demonstrate through simulation and experiments how real-time current controls can help to drastically reduce heat dissipation in a developing hot spot in a two-conductor model system and help identify critical current degradation of individual cable components. Prospects of other potential uses of MOSFET devices for improved voltage detection, AC loss-driven active quench protection, and remnant magnetization reduction in HTS magnets are also discussed.

Legislating Nurse Staffing: Projected Impact on Hospital Economics, Process Flow, and Hospital-Associated Infections in Montana.

The aim of this study was to project the impact of legislated nurse staffing ratios on patient-, staff-, and system-level outcomes for Prospective Payment System (PPS) hospitals in Montana. In 2023, House Bill 568 was introduced in Montana focused on legislating hospital safe nursing standards. A quantitative design was used for a convenience sample of Montana PPS hospitals. Data were gathered through a newly developed survey and from other publicly available sources for the years 2018 to 2022. Independent t tests were conducted when appropriate with the significance threshold set at 0.05. Projections indicate no significant change in patient outcome metrics accompanied by increases in labor requirements, slower emergency department throughput times, and decreases in hospital operating margins. In Montana, legislating nurse staffing ratios would have downstream implications inconsistent with the intended impact on patient safety, emphasizing the complexity of variables within and external to the healthcare system that drive patient-, staff-, and system-level outcomes.

Running safety assessment method of trains under seismic conditions based on the derailment risk domain

The accurate assessment of running safety during earthquakes is of significant importance for ensuring the safety of railway lines. Currently, assessment methods based on a single index suffer from issues such as misjudgment of operational safety and difficulty in evaluating operational margin, making them unsuitable for assessing train safety during earthquakes. Therefore, in order to propose an effective evaluation method for the running safety of trains during earthquakes, this study employs three indexes, namely lateral displacement of the wheel–rail contact point, wheel unloading rate, and wheel lift, to describe the lateral and vertical contact states between the wheel and rail. The corresponding evolution characteristics of the wheel–rail contact states are determined, and the derailment forms under different frequency components of seismic motion are identified through dynamic numerical simulations of the train–track coupled system under sine excitation. The variations in the wheel–rail contact states during the transition from a safe state to the critical state of derailment are analyzed, thereby constructing the evolutionary path of train derailment and seismic derailment risk domain. Lastly, the wheel–rail contact and derailment states under seismic conditions are analyzed, thus verifying the effectiveness of the evaluation method for assessing running safety under earthquakes proposed in this study. The results indicate that the assessment method based on the derailment risk domain accurately and comprehensively reflects the wheel–rail contact states under seismic conditions. It successfully determines the forms of train derailment, the risk levels of derailment, and the evolutionary paths of derailment risk.

Lean Blowout Proximity Sensing in a Low Emission Liquid-Fueled Combustor

ABSTRACT Advanced aircraft engine combustor designs, intended for achieving low NOx emissions, necessitate lean combustion with small operating margins above the LBO boundary, posing a high risk of exhibiting lean blowout (LBO) problems. Employing active LBO controllers receiving input from LBO proximity sensors can allow for narrower margins, thereby yielding multiple performance gains. Although several previous studies investigated LBO proximity sensing, they predominantly focused on premixed gas-fueled combustors. The application of proximity sensing approaches to liquid-fueled combustor designs, relevant to aircraft engines have not received adequate attention. Therefore, this study investigates LBO proximity sensing in a low emission lean direct injection (LDI) liquid-fueled combustor design developed by NASA. The combustor operates at atmospheric pressure with preheated air. The proximity sensing is examined by analyzing both OH* and CH* chemiluminescence signals, with a focus on assessing their relative performances. The signal analysis approaches include spectral, partial extinction event (LBO precursor) detection, signal RMS, and the CH*/OH* ratio, with an emphasis on the first two methods. Both steady-state and transient operating conditions have been examined. The combustor did not exhibit large-scale flame partial extinction and re-ignition events near LBO, as commonly observed in gas-fueled combustors. However, an increase in flame unsteadiness and partial extinction events with very subtle signatures in optical signals, have been observed. Low-pass filtering has been observed to considerably enhance the precursor signatures enabling their improved detection. With a reduction in LBO margin, an increase in signal low-frequency power, RMS, and precursor event occurrence rate have been observed, which were utilized for providing LBO proximity measures. A key finding from this study is that CH* signals provide significantly superior performance compared to OH* for the proximity sensing in all the approaches, and the potential reasons are discussed.

Analyzing the Impact of Government Policy Measures on the Return on Equity

The assessment of a company’s Return on Equity (ROE) is a challenging task for management. The main objective of this paper is to analyse the impact of government initiatives on the ROE of listed companies in India. The Indian government has taken many policy initiatives in the last decade to boost the infrastructure sector in the country. Therefore, it is worthwhile to evaluate how these policy initiatives have impacted the ROE of companies belonging to the infrastructure sector. 43 companies are selected for the purpose of the study. Both quantitative and qualitative methods are used for data analysis. Historical financial data from 2008 to 2023 is analysed using the DuPont model. Eleven industry experts, selected on the basis of their managerial experience in the infrastructure sector are interviewed and their opinions are coded using NVivo. The study finds that 67.4% of the variation in ROE is explained by three variables, namely asset turnover, financial leverage and operating profit margin. According to the industry experts, asset turnover and operating profit have a greater impact on ROE. The results of the study validate the accountability theory and are useful for policy makers and management of companies in the infrastructure sector in particular and other stakeholders in general who are interested in the relationship between government initiatives and their impact on the company’s ROE.

Continuous mapping of nuclear reactor core power using artificial neural network even in the presence of inactive detectors

Monitoring the radial power distribution during the operation of a pressurized light water reactor (PWR) is crucial for ensuring safe operating conditions and achieving high levels of fuel burnup. This paper introduces a methodology utilizing Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) for reconstructing the radial power distribution in the core of a Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) with a hot full power of 1876 MWth, such as the Angra 1 reactor. This approach uses measurements from Self-Powered Neutron Detectors (SPND), simulated through the SERPENT code. The use of ANN demonstrated good accuracy in predicting the radial power distribution with an average relative error of 1.27%, considering 36 active detectors, with maximum relative error of 6.99%. Moreover, the proposed process demonstrated robust performance, even when measurements from one, two, or three SPND detectors were unavailable, resulting in errors of 1.24%, 1.13 %, and 1.09%, respectively. Therefore, the methodology ensures a reliable reconstruction of the radial power distribution, even when SPND detector measurements are unavailable, enabling the optimization of detector use and contributing to the increase of operational safety margins.

GOVERNMENT SUPPORT AND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE POST-COVID-19: EVIDENCE FROM SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are vulnerable during the Covid-19 pandemic because they have limited resources. To prevent SMEs from going bankrupt after the Covid-19 pandemic, the government needs reasonable support policies for SMEs. This paper examines the impact of government support, including interest rate, tax, training, and consulting support, on the performance of SMEs post-COVID-19. We use Return on Assets (ROA), Return on Sales (ROS) and profit to represent the performance of SMEs. We have reviewed previous studies to propose a research model and questionnaire. Based on the questionnaire, we collected data from 355 SMEs in Vietnam by surveying in 2022. The OLS regression model was used to test the hypotheses in the research model. The results show that government support positively affects ROA, ROS and profit. Besides, SMEs that invest in new technologies, equipment or software have higher ROA and ROS and SMEs that obtain quality management system certificates such as ISO 9001 have better profits. Based on the research results, we have proposed solutions to support SMEs in overcoming crises like COVID-19. This result is crucial for policy-makers who want to allocate the government's limited budget to stimulate economic development.

Analysis of Capital Adequacy Ratio, Operating Expenses Operating Income, Non-Performing Financing, Financing to Deposit Ratio, and Net Operating Margin Return on Assets at Sharia Commercial Banks

This study was conducted to see the effect of Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR), Operating Costs to Operating Income (BOPO), Non-Performing Financing (NPF), Financing to Deposit Ratio (FDR), and Net Operating Margin (NOM) on Return on Assets (ROA) at Sharia Commercial Banks. The analysis method used is panel regression, the data used is secondary data from the financial statements of Islamic Commercial Banks for the 2021-2023 period. The results of the analysis stated that CAR, BOPO, NPF, FDR, and NOM have a simultaneous influence on ROA in Sharia Commercial Banks. Partially CAR, NPF, and FDR do not affect ROA. While NOM has a significant positive influence on ROA, on the contrary, BOPO has a significant negative influence on ROA. The results of this study provide important information for bank management in managing these factors to improve financial performance and bank profitability.

MICRO-EVIDENCE FROM BUSINESSES OPERATING IN THE BIST TECHNOLOGY AND INFORMATION SECTOR

Today, technology trade and investment represent a global economy that disregards national boundaries. Within the scope of this study, it is aimed to reveal the effect of whether businesses operating in the technology and IT sector operate in technology zones or not on their financial performance, and customer satisfaction and internationalization levels are examined. The financial statements of 31 businesses listed in Borsa Istanbul (BIST) technology and IT sector for the year 2022 were subjected to ratio analysis. Businesses located in technology development zones and businesses located outside technology development zones were grouped and the results of the ratio analysis were compared with the Mann-Whitney U test. According to the findings, no difference was found between the businesses located in technology development zones and the businesses outside the zone in terms of liquidity ratios, activity ratios, and customer satisfaction. However, a significant difference was found in terms of the ratio of non-current assets to continuing capital among financial structure ratios; a significant difference was found in terms of gross profit margin ratio and operating profit margin ratio among profitability ratios. In terms of internationalization level, it was determined that the businesses located in technology development zones showed superior performance.

Метод расчета ставок роялти на основе Big Data и Fuzzy Logic

The article by an expert from the Intellectual Property Valuation School and the Experimental Economics Laboratory of CEMI RAS is devoted to the development and application of the "LABRATE ROYALTY PRO" method for calculating royalty rates, based on Big Data analysis and Fuzzy Logic. Using the serial case of "Rikor Electronics" as an example, the problem of determining a fair (market) royalty rate, dependent on three key indi-cators — Licensor's Share (LS), Return on Sales (ROS), and EBIT Margin (EM) — has been addressed. Tradi-tional methods based on production or cost profitability do not correlate with sales revenue indicators, necessitat-ing adaptation to Russian realities and international practices. The article provides a detailed algorithm for calcula-tion, based on the analysis of companies' financial indicators, industry statistics, and the use of Big Data and Fuzzy Logic technologies. Examples from judicial practice confirm the effectiveness of the proposed approach in ensuring objective and fair decisions on determining royalty rates, the value of trademark usage rights, and com-pensation calculations. Special attention is given to the importance of precise and clear descriptions of the re-search objects and source data.

FINANCIAL RATIO ANALYSIS AS A TOOL FOR MEASURING FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE IN PT. BATURAJA CEMENT (PERSERO)

The financial performance of PT Semen Baturaja (Persero) for the period 2020-2022 needs to be evaluated to determine the effectiveness of management in managing the company's finances. The purpose of the study is to measure the financial performance of PT Semen Baturaja (Persero) through financial statement analysis over the period 2020, 2021, and 2022. This study uses various types of financial ratios such as Liquidity, Solvency, and Profitability. The research method used is qualitative with a quantitative approach. The data used is sourced from the financial statements of PT Semen Baturaja (Persero) Tbk for the years 2020, 2021, and 2022, obtained from the Indonesia Stock Exchange. The analysis results show that the company has good liquidity because current assets are higher than current liabilities. The solvency ratio level is quite healthy. Although the Debt to Asset Ratio (DAR) indicates high debt, the low Debt to Equity Ratio (DER) values show that most of the assets are still funded by equity. The company's profitability level is less healthy. Although the Gross Profit Margin (GPM) shows positive results and is higher than the industry average, other ratios such as Operating Profit Margin (OPM), Net Profit Margin (NPM), Return on Assets (ROA), and Return on Equity (ROE) indicate that the company has significant room for improvement in operational efficiency, cost management, and optimization of asset and equity utilization. Keywords: Analysis, Liquidity, Solvency, Profitability

The Influence of Financing, Service-Based Income, and Internal Factors on Net Operating Margin in Islamic Commercial Banks

The Influence of Financing, Service-Based Income, and Internal Factors on Net Operating Margin in Islamic Commercial Banks

Elasticity of environmental, social, sustainable and management stocks: an analysis of market breakdown, technology and growth while COVID-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent eradication precipitated a rare and unexpected stock market crash. Consequently, the crisis presents a unique chance to evaluate Environmental, Social, Sustainable, and Management (ESSM) policy choices. The contribution of this study is to demonstrate the application of the investment horizon of ESSM concerns and investment decisions, technology and growth and shows the significance of the long-term perspective in ESSM investment decision making. During the period of January 2020 to December 2021, stocks with higher ESSM ratings had significantly greater returns, less return arbitrariness, and bigger operational profit margins. ESSM ventures with more advertising expenditures had higher stock returns, but investors with a greater predisposition for ESSM saw less return arbitrariness during market crises. This study emphasizes the importance of investor and consumer loyalty to the elasticity of ESSM stocks.

FAKTOR-FAKTOR YANG MEMPENGARUHI INCOME SMOOTHING

Operating profit margin and financial leverage have increased and fluctuated but income smoothing has not completely increased, and vice versa. The practice of profit equalization phenomenon emerged to reduce fluctuations in reported profits. Another case that occurred at the Kimia Farma company, carried out profit equalization actions, allegedly marking up net profit in the 2019 financial report, in the financial report it was able to obtain a profit of IDR 132 billion. However, the reported profit is different from the actual profit of IDR 132 billion. However, the reported profit was IDR 99 billion. In another case at Indofarma Tbk, goods were found to be of higher value than they should be. As well as having an impact on profits. The aim of this research is to analyze operating profit margin and financial leverage which have an impact on income smoothing. The population in this study is the number of food and beverage companies registered on the IDX. The sampling technique used criteria so that there were 14 samples in this study. Data analysis using regression analysis. The results obtained were up to 8 companies that experienced fluctuating data from operating profit margin and financial leverage as well as income smoothing. The research results state that financial leverage has no significant effect on income smoothing, while operating profit margin has an effect on income smoothing.

UNICO: an open-source controller optimized for stall-regulated wind turbines

Stall regulation turbines still represent the preferred solution for small wind turbines. In stall-controlled rotors the controller plays a key role but, differently from pitch-based ones, no open-source controller was available to date. The study presents the UNICO (UNIfi research COntroller) controller, which has been specifically developed for variable speed stall-regulated turbines. The controller has been developed in MATLAB® Simulink® and a dynamic link library (.dll) has been generated, which can be coupled with common simulation codes such as OpenFAST and QBlade using a Bladed-style interface. UNICO includes features that are specifically tailored to variable-speed stall-regulated turbines. For below-rated conditions, the controller employs either the commonly used k-ω2 law or a tracking of the optimal tip speed ratio. For above-rated conditions, a PI controller is used to track a user-imposed reference speed. The reference speed is set to decrease linearly with wind speed, providing a safety margin for turbine operation at higher wind speeds. UNICO has been tested on a 50-kW stall-regulated reference turbine. Preliminary results show how the proposed controller can achieve better overall performance in comparison to the simplified control laws implemented in state-of-the-art codes. Additionally, the rotor speed can be controlled in above-rated conditions, providing an increased run away safety margin.

Do CEOs Identified as Value Investors Outperform Those Who Are Not?

The aim of this study is to examine whether good asset allocation by a CEO leads to superior stock returns and, if so, how one might be able to identify CEOs that are good asset allocators. Employing US data from May 2001 to April 2019, we find that CEOs that invest the company’s cash flows according to a value-investing style seem to outperform companies that do not. We find that high goodwill to assets and high operating margin (good asset allocator) companies outperform companies with high or low goodwill to assets and low operating margin (poor asset allocator) companies. The findings are corroborated with out-of-sample (May 2019–April 2023) robustness tests. When buying other businesses, value investor CEOs ensure that their consolidated operating margins remain high, as opposed to other firms managed by poor asset allocator CEOs who buy businesses that bring down operating margins, either because they overpay or due to an inability to materialize expected synergies. Using both summary statistics and regression analysis, the findings of this study help us identify companies that allocate assets like value investors and enable us to anticipate future stock performance. For example, if a company, on average, has a goodwill/assets ratio of 41.03%, and an operating margin of 21.38%, it is likely this firm would be at the top quartile in terms of stock return performance over at least the next three years. At the same time, if a firm has a low average goodwill/assets ratio (i.e., 1.95%), its operating margins, on average, should be 24.46%, if it wants to achieve a similar performance as that of firms with high goodwill/assets. Moreover, the future stock return predictability of high (low) goodwill/assets and high (low) operating margin firms, found in this study, can help an investor develop trading strategies that can lead to superior stock price performance by effectively taking long positions in (shorting) firms that are (not) managed by value investor CEOs. Finally, the paper’s findings can also help investors in another way. For example, investors tend to be skeptical about companies with high goodwill/assets. The rule of thumb is to beware of companies carrying goodwill on their balance sheets that is more than 25% of assets. Based on our findings, this should not be a problem as long as the company’s operating margin has remained high and is rising.

Channel Operating Margin Exploration as a Complementary Transceiver Circuit Design Tool for 25 Gbps PAM4 Serial Links

The design of high-speed serial links continues to attract the attention of the electronics industry due to the steady development of different telecommunications standards, generating a constantly growing data rate and new modulation schemes. However, conventional certification metrics can lead to sub-optimal transmit (Tx) and receive (Rx) circuit designs. Therefore, the Ethernet standard IEEE 802.3bj introduced a more effective evaluation method called channel operating margin (COM) to explore the design space at an early stage. Although the advantages of COM have been discussed in the literature and only a few works explore its potential as a backplane design tool, there are no reports on the use of COM as a complementary design tool for transceiver circuits. This work studies the use of COM as a complementary tool for transceiver design. COM performance is evaluated for four 100GBASE-KP4 backplanes and different equalization architectures. The impact of the metric and the challenges associated with incorporating new equalization structures into the COM flow are discussed. The results reveal a conventional Tx-Rx architecture that exceeds the COM threshold and an alternative one that improves the opening of the eye diagram but does not exceed the threshold.

Influence of Return On Assets (ROA), Debt To Equity Ratio (DER), Current Ratio (CR), Debt To Asset Ratio (DAR) On Stock Returns In Food And Beverage Sector Manufacturing Companies Listed On The Indonesia Stock Exchange For The Period 2018 - 2022

This study seeks to examine the impact of Return on Asset (ROA), Debt to Equity Ratio (DER), Current Ratio (CR), and Debt to Asset Ratio (DAR) on Stock Return in manufacturing companies within the food and beverage industry sector listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange from 2018 to 2022. The study will analyze the relationship between these variables both individually and simultaneously. The approach employed in this study is a quantitative methodology. From 2018 to 2019, 28 food and beverage industry production enterprises comprised 80 samples. This study utilized purposive sampling and employed various statistical tests, including the partial t-test, simultaneous F-test, classical assumption test, and adjusted R-square test. The test results indicate a significant relationship between Return on Assets (ROA) and Return on Sales (RS), as evidenced by the p-value of 0.003, which is less than the significance level of 0.05. (2) In the SPSS T-test, a sig value of 0.499>0.05 indicates no significant influence of DER on RS. (3) The results of the SPSS testing using the T-test show that the significance value is 0.484, more significant than 0.05. This condition indicates that CR does not have a significant influence on RS. (4) Based on the findings of the statistical significance test (p-value of 0.134>0.05), it may be inferred that DAR does not have a significant influence on RS. The calculated value of f, 4.664, is greater than the critical value of 2.49, and the significance level of 0.003 is less than the threshold of 0.05. Therefore, we can infer that the null hypothesis (H0) is rejected and the alternative hypothesis (Ha) is accepted. The Adjusted R Square value is 0.194, indicating that the independent variables can explain 19.4% of the variation in Y (RS). Other factors influence the remaining 80.6% of the variation.

Performance of Scheduled Banks in India

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to analyze and compare the financial performance of scheduled banks in India, specifically focusing on the distinction between public sector banks and private sector banks. By utilizing financial ratios obtained from secondary data sources such as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the study aims to uncover intrinsic differences and similarities between these two sectors. The ultimate goal is to provide insights that can inform decision-making and policy formulation for stakeholders such as policymakers, industry practitioners, and enthusiasts interested in the Indian banking sector. Research Design: The research design employed in this study is primarily quantitative and comparative. The study utilizes secondary data obtained from sources like the RBI and money control, covering a period from 2013 to 2023. A sample size of 12 public sector banks and 21 private sector bank is selected for analysis. Financial ratios such as net profit margin, operating profit margin, return on assets, and others are calculated and compared across the selected banks to assess their financial performance. Comparative analysis, aided by tools like Excel and graphical representations, is used to interpret the data and identify trends and patterns over the ten-year period. Results and Findings: The results of the study reveal significant variations in the financial performance of scheduled banks in India, particularly between public sector and private sector banks. HDFC Bank emerges as a top performer, consistently demonstrating high net profit margins, positive operating profit margins, and robust returns on assets. On the other hand, banks like IDBI Bank, IDFC First Bank Ltd., and Yes Bank Ltd. exhibit poor performance across multiple indicators, including negative operating profit margins and low returns on assets. Several banks, including ICICI Bank and Axis Bank, display inconsistent performance, indicating areas for improvement in operational efficiency and cost control. Overall, the findings underscore the importance of maintaining stable profitability, effective asset utilization, and prudent cost management strategies for sustainable growth in the banking sector. Originality of the Study: This study contributes to the existing literature on the Indian banking sector by providing a comprehensive analysis of the financial performance of scheduled banks, with a specific focus on the distinction between public and private sectors. By utilizing a ten-year dataset and employing financial ratios as analytical tools, the study offers valuable insights into the dynamics of the banking industry in India. Furthermore, the comparative approach adopted in the study enhances its originality by allowing for a nuanced examination of performance trends and patterns across different banks. Overall, the study fills a gap in the literature by addressing the need for empirical research on the financial performance of scheduled banks in India, thereby offering valuable implications for policymakers, industry practitioners, and other stakeholders.

Neobanks in emerging markets: a risk assessment

Neobanks have risen as popular digital challengers to incumbent banks, especially in emerging markets (EMs) where the banking sector is often characterized by oligopolies. This article first estimates the value of Nubank and StoneCo in Brazil, two of the fastest-growing neobanks in Brazil. Normalizing revenue growth assumptions from their financial data, valuation models uncover that Nubank could be overvalued by about two times, whereas StoneCo could be undervalued by 80% of its fair value, as of March 19, 2024. This article then discusses firm-specific (high cumulative net operating losses, low long-term operating margins, high borrowing costs) and adherent macroeconomic (political uncertainty, foreign exchange risks, high equity risk premia) risks in EMs that explain the volatility in Nubank’s and StoneCo’s stock prices. These risks are instructive for understanding the challenges facing the business model of neobanks in EMs.