l’utile sul capitale investito - return on investments
The total return on a portfolio of investments takes into account not only the capital appreciation on the portfolio, but also the income received on the portfolio.
Stock and bond funds provide annual Total Return values summarizing the last ten years of operation. Total Return assumes that dividends and interest are reinvested in the funds.

http://www.philosophicaleconomics.com/2014/01/spxestimate/
To accurately estimate future total returns, we need to rigorously examine the individual components that drive total return. On the classic “valuation” construction, there are three components:
(1) Change in Price-Earnings (PE) Multiple
(2) Change in Earnings Per Share (EPS), consisting of:
(a) Change in Total Revenue
(b) Change in Profit Margin
(c) Change in Share Count (driven by dilution, buybacks, and acquisitions)
(3) Total Dividends Paid

If you know these three components, then you know the total return. The challenge is to estimate the path of each component over the next 10 years.