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A Level · Cambridge (CIE) · 9706

Calculate earnings per share

Express profit for the year for each issued ordinary share using the appendix formula.

Cambridge International AS & A Level Accounting 9706 · Topic 3.5 · 2026–2028 · 3.5
Exam scope and assessment notes

Cambridge International AS & A Level Accounting 9706, 2026–2028 syllabus, Version 2. Use the ratio formulae in the syllabus appendix exactly; Cambridge states these are the only formulae accepted. Use year-end balances where appropriate unless the question specifies averages, and round to the requested number of decimal places. Practice is self-checked, not an official Cambridge grade. Full timed Papers 1–4 and human subject-teacher review remain outstanding.

Before you begin

  • Use the AS Topic 1.6 ratio, financial-statement and stakeholder skills. These lessons add only the A Level ratios and interpretation required by Topic 3.5.

Work on paper. Try each question before revealing help, and explain why your method works.

Quick readiness check

Profit for the year is $120,000 and 400,000 shares are issued. What is EPS?

What you will learn

  • Calculate earnings per share from profit for the year and issued ordinary shares
  • Keep currency units consistent
  • Explain what EPS does and does not show to an investor

Calculate profit per issued ordinary share

Earnings per share (EPS) = profit for the year ÷ number of issued ordinary shares. If profit is in dollars and share count is in shares, the result is dollars per share; convert to cents only if useful and clearly label the unit.

Use the issued ordinary shares given in the question and the stated profit for the year. Do not use market price, dividends or total equity as the denominator. If share counts change during a period, follow the data and treatment specified by the question rather than inventing a weighted figure.

Read EPS as an accounting measure

EPS indicates profit for the year per issued ordinary share in the figures provided. It is not a cash dividend and does not by itself show the market's valuation or the whole return earned by a shareholder.

Compare EPS over time with profit quality, share issues, one-off items and dividend policy. A rise may reflect stronger profit, fewer shares, or both; explain the cause before recommending an investment decision.

Pause and explain

Is EPS the dividend paid to each shareholder?

Put the idea to work

Worked example

Profit for the year is $180,000 and 600,000 ordinary shares are issued. Calculate EPS in dollars and cents per share.

Show the worked solution
  1. $180,000 ÷ 600,000 = $0.30 per share.
  2. $0.30 × 100 cents per dollar = 30 cents.
  3. Label the result as 30 cents per issued ordinary share.

Answer EPS is $0.30, or 30 cents, per share.

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Choose Easy, Normal or Difficult. Save your answers and open worked review after finishing.

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From guided practice to a new situation

Write your answer and reasoning first. Use a hint only if you are stuck. The model solution is for self-checking; your written work is not automatically marked.

1 · Guided

Profit for the year is $225,000 and 750,000 ordinary shares are issued. Calculate EPS.

Give me a hint

Divide the profit amount by the share count.

Compare my reasoning
  1. $225,000 ÷ 750,000 = $0.30.
  2. The unit is dollars per share.
  3. If expressed in cents, $0.30 = 30 cents per share.

EPS is $0.30 or 30 cents per share.

Look for these in your work

  • Use profit for the year.
  • Divide by 750,000 issued ordinary shares.
  • Label the result per share.
2 · Independent

Profit for the year rises from $96,000 to $110,000 while issued shares rise from 400,000 to 500,000. Calculate EPS for both years and compare.

Give me a hint

Calculate each year's profit per share instead of comparing total profit only.

Compare my reasoning
  1. Earlier EPS = $96,000 ÷ 400,000 = $0.24.
  2. Current EPS = $110,000 ÷ 500,000 = $0.22.
  3. Total profit increased but EPS fell by $0.02 per share because the share count grew proportionately more.

EPS falls from $0.24 to $0.22 even though total profit rises; explain the share-issue effect.

Look for these in your work

  • Calculate each EPS separately.
  • Identify the $0.02 decline.
  • Relate the change to profit and share-count growth.
3 · Transfer

An investor sees EPS rise after a company sells a business and reports a one-off gain. What should the investor ask before treating the rise as improved recurring performance?

Give me a hint

Separate the reported figure from the source and repeatability of earnings.

Compare my reasoning
  1. Identify the gain and whether it arose from ongoing operations or a one-off disposal.
  2. Compare recurring profit and issued shares with the earlier period.
  3. Assess future operating prospects and other investor ratios before concluding the business's earning power improved.

Check the one-off gain, recurring profit and share-count changes. A single reported EPS increase does not establish sustained improvement.

Look for these in your work

  • Identify one-off profit effects.
  • Compare recurring profit and shares issued.
  • Use broader evidence before advising.

Common mistakes

  • Using total share capital dollars instead of the number of shares
  • Confusing EPS with dividends per share
  • Comparing EPS across companies without considering share counts and profit quality
Recall without your notes

What can you explain now?

What is the denominator in the syllabus EPS formula?

Compare with the explanation

Number of issued ordinary shares

The appendix defines EPS as profit for the year divided by issued ordinary shares.

After trying it yourself, choose your next review. This is your self-assessment.

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Make it stick

State the EPS formula and explain how it differs from dividend per share.

If you needed the solution, close it and solve the problem again from a blank page. A correct answer is stronger when you can explain the reason for each step.

Keep learning Accounting

Course scope and assessment

197 original lessons teach Topics 1.1–1.6 and 2.1–2.2, plus Topics 3.1–3.5 and 4.1–4.4, with explained, staged practice mapped to the listed syllabus objectives, including all four Topic 1.5 objectives. Topic 3.1 covers partnership changes, clubs and societies, manufacturing accounts and the limited-company statement set. Topic 3.2 covers all nine named IAS at Cambridge's stated main-provisions level, ethical principles, audit and stewardship. Topic 3.3 covers business mergers and acquisitions, goodwill, consideration, ledger entries, post-acquisition statements and evaluation. Topic 3.4 covers controlled accounting-data conversion and integrity checks. Topic 3.5 covers all nine appendix ratios, exact prescribed formulae, interrelationships, limitations and justified stakeholder recommendations. Topic 4.1 covers cost pools, cost drivers, ABC overhead allocation, unit costs, selling prices, comparisons, uses, limitations and business decisions. Topic 4.2 covers standard costing, all listed cost and sales variances, their causes and relationships, budget improvement and non-financial decision factors. Topic 4.3 covers linked master-budget schedules, all nine listed budgets, limiting factors, flexible-budget statements and reconciliations, target behaviour and supported decisions. Topic 4.4 covers future project cash flows, payback, ARR, NPV, IRR, method limits and balanced recommendations; Cambridge excludes discounted payback and residual-value questions. All 17 topics have full mapped sequences. The separately published 2029 syllabus is not covered. Practice is self-checked and does not award Cambridge grades. Full timed Papers 1–4 and human subject-teacher review remain outstanding.

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