Yahoo Finance The Returns At IMI (LON:IMI) Provide Us With Signs Of What's To Come
If we want to find a stock that could multiply over the long term, what are the underlying trends we should look for? One common approach is to try and find a company with returns on capital employed (ROCE) that are increasing, in conjunction with a growing amount of capital employed. If you see this, it typically means it's a company with a great business model and plenty of profitable reinvestment opportunities. However, after briefly looking over the numbers, we don't think IMI (LON:IMI) has the makings of a multi-bagger going forward, but let's have a look at why that may be.
Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)
Just to clarify if you're unsure, ROCE is a metric for evaluating how much pre-tax income (in percentage terms) a company earns on the capital invested in its business. To calculate this metric for IMI, this is the formula:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.18 = UK£260m ÷ (UK£2.0b - UK£576m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2020).
Thus, IMI has an ROCE of 18%. In absolute terms, that's a satisfactory return, but compared to the Machinery industry average of 12% it's much better.
Check out our latest analysis for IMI
In the above chart we have measured IMI's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free report on analyst forecasts for the company.
The Trend Of ROCE
On the surface, the trend of ROCE at IMI doesn't inspire confidence. To be more specific, ROCE has fallen from 27% over the last five years. However it looks like IMI might be reinvesting for long term growth because while capital employed has increased, the company's sales haven't changed much in the last 12 months. It's worth keeping an eye on the company's earnings from here on to see if these investments do end up contributing to the bottom line.
What We Can Learn From IMI's ROCE
To conclude, we've found that IMI is reinvesting in the business, but returns have been falling. Since the stock has gained an impressive 99% over the last five years, investors must think there's better things to come. But if the trajectory of these underlying trends continue, we think the likelihood of it being a multi-bagger from here isn't high.
One more thing, we've spotted 2 warning signs facing IMI that you might find interesting.
If you want to search for solid companies with great earnings, check out this free list of companies with good balance sheets and impressive 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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