Yahoo Finance Northamber (LON:NAR) Shareholders Will Want The ROCE Trajectory To Continue
Did you know there are some financial metrics that can provide clues of a potential multi-bagger? Amongst other things, we'll want to see two things; firstly, a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an expansion in the company's amount of capital employed. This shows us that it's a compounding machine, able to continually reinvest its earnings back into the business and generate higher returns. With that in mind, we've noticed some promising trends at Northamber (LON:NAR) so let's look a bit deeper.
What Is Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)?
For those who don't know, ROCE is a measure of a company's yearly pre-tax profit (its return), relative to the capital employed in the business. The formula for this calculation on Northamber is:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.0015 = UK£38k ÷ (UK£34m - UK£8.9m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2021).
Therefore, Northamber has an ROCE of 0.2%. Ultimately, that's a low return and it under-performs the Electronic industry average of 9.9%.
See our latest analysis for Northamber
While the past is not representative of the future, it can be helpful to know how a company has performed historically, which is why we have this chart above. If you'd like to look at how Northamber has performed in the past in other metrics, you can view this free graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.
What Does the ROCE Trend For Northamber Tell Us?
The fact that Northamber is now generating some pre-tax profits from its prior investments is very encouraging. The company was generating losses five years ago, but now it's earning 0.2% which is a sight for sore eyes. Not only that, but the company is utilizing 34% more capital than before, but that's to be expected from a company trying to break into profitability. This can tell us that the company has plenty of reinvestment opportunities that are able to generate higher returns.
Our Take On Northamber's ROCE
Overall, Northamber gets a big tick from us thanks in most part to the fact that it is now profitable and is reinvesting in its business. Since the stock has returned a solid 81% to shareholders over the last five years, it's fair to say investors are beginning to recognize these changes. Therefore, we think it would be worth your time to check if these trends are going to continue.
If you'd like to know about the risks facing Northamber, we've discovered 2 warning signs that you should be aware of.
While Northamber isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
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