In finance, return is a profit on an investment. It comprises any change in value of the investment, and/or cash flows (or securities, or other investments) which the investor receives from that investment over a specified time period, such as interest payments, coupons, cash dividends and stock dividends. It may be measured either in absolute terms (e.g., dollars) or as a percentage of the amount invested. The latter is also called the holding period return. A loss instead of a profit is described as a negative return, assuming the amount invested is greater than zero. To compare returns over time periods of different lengths on an equal basis, it is useful to convert each return into a return over a period of time of a standard length. The result of the conversion is called the rate of return. Typically, the period of time is a year, in which case the rate of return is also called the annualized return, and the conversion process, described below, is called annualization. The return on investment (ROI) is return per dollar invested. It is a measure of investment performance, as opposed to size (cf. return on equity, return on assets, return on capital employed).
Calculation The return, or the holding period return, can be calculated over a single period. The single period may last any length of time. The overall period may, however, instead be divided into contiguous subperiods. This means that there is more than one time period, each sub-period beginning at the point in time where the previous one ended. In such a case, where there are multiple contiguous subperiods, the return or the holding period return over the overall period can be calculated by combining the returns within each of the subperiods.
Single-period
Return The direct method to calculate the return or the holding period return R {\displaystyle R} over a single period of any length of time is:
R = V f − V i V i {\displaystyle R={\frac {V_{f}-V_{i}}{V_{i}}}}
where:
V f {\displaystyle V_{f}} = final value, including dividends and interest
V i {\displaystyle V_{i}} = initial value For example, if someone purchases 100 shares at a starting price of 10, the starting value is 100 x 10 = 1,000. If the shareholder then collects 0.50 per share in cash dividends, and the ending share price is 9.80, then at the end the shareholder has 100 x 0.50 = 50 in cash, plus 100 x 9.80 = 980 in shares, totalling a final value of 1,030. The change in value is 1,030 − 1,000 = 30, so the return is 30 1 , 000 = 3 % {\displaystyle {\frac {30}{1,000}}=3\%} .
Negative initial value Return measures the increase in size of an asset or liability or short position. A negative initial value usually occurs for a liability or short position. If the initial value is negative, and the final value is more negative, then the return will be positive. In such a case, the positive return represents a loss rather than a profit. If the initial value is zero, then no return can be calculated.
Currency of measurement The return, or rate of return, depends on the currency of measurement. For example, suppose a US$10,000 (US dollar) cash deposit earns 2% interest over a year, so its value at the end of the year is US$10,200 including interest. The return over the year is 2%, measured in USD. Let us suppose also that the exchange rate to Japanese yen at the start of the year is 120 yen per USD, and 132 yen per USD at the end of the year. The value in yen of one USD has increased by 10% over the period. The deposit is worth 1.2 million yen at the start of the year, and 10,200 x 132 = 1,346,400 yen at the end of the year. The return on the deposit over the year in yen terms is therefore:
1 , 346 , 400 − 1 , 200 , 000 1 , 200 , 000 = 12.2 % {\displaystyle {\frac {1,346,400-1,200,000}{1,200,000}}=12.2\%}
This is the rate of return experienced either by an investor who starts with yen, converts to dollars, invests in the USD deposit, and converts the eventual proceeds back to yen; or for any investor, who wishes to measure the return in Japanese yen terms, for comparison purposes.
Annualization Without any reinvestment, a return R {\displaystyle R} over a period of time t {\displaystyle t} corresponds to a rate of return r {\displaystyle r} :
r = R t {\displaystyle r={\frac {R}{t}}}
For example, let us suppose that US$20,000 is returned on an initial investment of US$100,000. This is a return of US$20,000 divided by US$100,000, which equals 20 percent. The US$20,000 is paid in 5 irregularly-timed installments of US$4,000, with no reinvestment, over a 5-year period, and with no information provided about the timing of the installments. The rate of return is 4,000 / 100,000 = 4% per year. Assuming returns are reinvested however, due to the effect of compounding, the relationship between a rate of return r {\displaystyle r} , and a return R {\displaystyle R} over a length of time t {\displaystyle t} is:
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