Yahoo Finance Returns on Capital Paint A Bright Future For Great Panther Mining (TSE:GPR)
There are a few key trends to look for if we want to identify the next multi-bagger. Ideally, a business will show two trends; firstly a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an increasing amount of capital employed. Put simply, these types of businesses are compounding machines, meaning they are continually reinvesting their earnings at ever-higher rates of return. With that in mind, the ROCE of Great Panther Mining (TSE:GPR) looks great, so lets see what the trend can tell us.
Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)
If you haven't worked with ROCE before, it measures the 'return' (pre-tax profit) a company generates from capital employed in its business. The formula for this calculation on Great Panther Mining is:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.34 = US$60m ÷ (US$258m - US$79m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2021).
Thus, Great Panther Mining has an ROCE of 34%. In absolute terms that's a great return and it's even better than the Metals and Mining industry average of 1.3%.
See our latest analysis for Great Panther Mining
In the above chart we have measured Great Panther Mining's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report for Great Panther Mining.
What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us
We're delighted to see that Great Panther Mining is reaping rewards from its investments and is now generating some pre-tax profits. The company was generating losses five years ago, but now it's earning 34% which is a sight for sore eyes. In addition to that, Great Panther Mining is employing 283% more capital than previously which is expected of a company that's trying to break into profitability. This can indicate that there's plenty of opportunities to invest capital internally and at ever higher rates, both common traits of a multi-bagger.
On a side note, we noticed that the improvement in ROCE appears to be partly fueled by an increase in current liabilities. Essentially the business now has suppliers or short-term creditors funding about 31% of its operations, which isn't ideal. Keep an eye out for future increases because when the ratio of current liabilities to total assets gets particularly high, this can introduce some new risks for the business.
In Conclusion...
Overall, Great Panther Mining gets a big tick from us thanks in most part to the fact that it is now profitable and is reinvesting in its business. Astute investors may have an opportunity here because the stock has declined 56% in the last five years. So researching this company further and determining whether or not these trends will continue seems justified.
Since virtually every company faces some risks, it's worth knowing what they are, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Great Panther Mining (of which 1 doesn't sit too well with us!) that you should know about.
If you want to search for more stocks that have been earning high returns, check out this free list of stocks with solid balance sheets that are also earning high returns on equity.
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. 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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