چکیده (انگلیسی):

This paper demonstrates why EPS comparisons across companies are meaningless. An example is
provided showing how a company with a higher ROE than another company may have a lower
EPS simply from having a lower book value per share (and more shares outstanding) than the
comparison company. While ROE comparisons across companies can be useful, cross-company
EPS comparisons are meaningless due to the arbitrary number of shares outstanding across
companies. The authors review the EPS discussion of 31 financial and intermediate accounting
textbooks aimed at US students and find that six of these textbooks incorrectly assert or imply that
cross-company EPS comparisons are meaningful. Over 50% of the textbooks reviewed provide no
warning that cross-company EPS comparisons should be avoided.