Yahoo Finance Is Cairo Communication S.p.A.’s (BIT:CAI) 7.7% Return On Capital Employed Good News?
Today we'll evaluate Cairo Communication S.p.A. (BIT:CAI) to determine whether it could have potential as an investment idea. Specifically, we'll consider its Return On Capital Employed (ROCE), since that will give us an insight into how efficiently the business can generate profits from the capital it requires.
First up, we'll look at what ROCE is and how we calculate it. Then we'll compare its ROCE to similar companies. Last but not least, we'll look at what impact its current liabilities have on its ROCE.
Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)
ROCE measures the amount of pre-tax profits a company can generate from the capital employed in its business. In general, businesses with a higher ROCE are usually better quality. Overall, it is a valuable metric that has its flaws. Author Edwin Whiting says to be careful when comparing the ROCE of different businesses, since 'No two businesses are exactly alike.
So, How Do We Calculate ROCE?
The formula for calculating the return on capital employed is:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
Or for Cairo Communication:
0.077 = €104m ÷ (€1.5b - €125m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2019.)
Therefore, Cairo Communication has an ROCE of 7.7%.
Check out our latest analysis for Cairo Communication
Is Cairo Communication's ROCE Good?
One way to assess ROCE is to compare similar companies. We can see Cairo Communication's ROCE is around the 9.4% average reported by the Media industry. Aside from the industry comparison, Cairo Communication's ROCE is mediocre in absolute terms, considering the risk of investing in stocks versus the safety of a bank account. It is possible that there are more rewarding investments out there.
In our analysis, Cairo Communication's ROCE appears to be 7.7%, compared to 3 years ago, when its ROCE was 4.4%. This makes us think the business might be improving. You can see in the image below how Cairo Communication's ROCE compares to its industry. Click to see more on past growth.
When considering this metric, keep in mind that it is backwards looking, and not necessarily predictive. ROCE can be misleading for companies in cyclical industries, with returns looking impressive during the boom times, but very weak during the busts. ROCE is only a point-in-time measure. What happens in the future is pretty important for investors, so we have prepared a free report on analyst forecasts for Cairo Communication.
Do Cairo Communication's Current Liabilities Skew Its ROCE?
Liabilities, such as supplier bills and bank overdrafts, are referred to as current liabilities if they need to be paid within 12 months. Due to the way ROCE is calculated, a high level of current liabilities makes a company look as though it has less capital employed, and thus can (sometimes unfairly) boost the ROCE. To check the impact of this, we calculate if a company has high current liabilities relative to its total assets.
Cairo Communication has current liabilities of €125m and total assets of €1.5b. Therefore its current liabilities are equivalent to approximately 8.5% of its total assets. Cairo Communication has a low level of current liabilities, which have a minimal impact on its uninspiring ROCE.
What We Can Learn From Cairo Communication's ROCE
Based on this information, Cairo Communication appears to be a mediocre business. But note: make sure you look for a great company, not just the first idea you come across. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and a P/E ratio below 20).
If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
