Why The 24% Return On Capital At Skellerup Holdings (NZSE:SKL) Should Have Your Attention

To find a multi-bagger stock, what are the underlying trends we should look for in a business? Firstly, we'd want to identify a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and then alongside that, an ever-increasing base of capital employed. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. And in light of that, the trends we're seeing at Skellerup Holdings' (NZSE:SKL) look very promising so lets take a look.

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. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Skellerup Holdings:

Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)

0.24 = NZ$72m ÷ (NZ$343m - NZ$43m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2023).

Therefore, Skellerup Holdings has an ROCE of 24%. In absolute terms that's a great return and it's even better than the Machinery industry average of 12%.

See our latest analysis for Skellerup Holdings

roce

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Skellerup Holdings compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

The Trend Of ROCE

Skellerup Holdings is displaying some positive trends. The data shows that returns on capital have increased substantially over the last five years to 24%. The amount of capital employed has increased too, by 38%. So we're very much inspired by what we're seeing at Skellerup Holdings thanks to its ability to profitably reinvest capital.

The Key Takeaway

To sum it up, Skellerup Holdings has proven it can reinvest in the business and generate higher returns on that capital employed, which is terrific. Since the stock has returned a staggering 179% to shareholders over the last five years, it looks like investors are recognizing these changes. So given the stock has proven it has promising trends, it's worth researching the company further to see if these trends are likely to persist.

On a final note, we've found 1 warning sign for Skellerup Holdings that we think you should be aware of.

High returns are a key ingredient to strong performance, so check out our free list ofstocks earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets.

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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.