Finding a business that has the potential to grow substantially is not easy, but it is possible if we look at a few key financial metrics. 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. In light of that, when we looked at Vanov Holdings (HKG:2260) and its ROCE trend, we weren't exactly thrilled.
What Is Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)?
For those that aren't sure what ROCE is, it measures the amount of pre-tax profits a company can generate from the capital employed in its business. The formula for this calculation on Vanov Holdings is:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.098 = CN¥62m ÷ (CN¥823m - CN¥191m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2023).
Therefore, Vanov Holdings has an ROCE of 9.8%. In absolute terms, that's a low return but it's around the Luxury industry average of 11%.
View our latest analysis for Vanov Holdings
Historical performance is a great place to start when researching a stock so above you can see the gauge for Vanov Holdings' ROCE against it's prior returns. If you'd like to look at how Vanov Holdings has performed in the past in other metrics, you can view this free graph of Vanov Holdings' past earnings, revenue and cash flow.
What Can We Tell From Vanov Holdings' ROCE Trend?
On the surface, the trend of ROCE at Vanov Holdings doesn't inspire confidence. To be more specific, ROCE has fallen from 49% over the last five years. However it looks like Vanov Holdings 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 may take some time before the company starts to see any change in earnings from these investments.
On a side note, Vanov Holdings has done well to pay down its current liabilities to 23% of total assets. That could partly explain why the ROCE has dropped. What's more, this can reduce some aspects of risk to the business because now the company's suppliers or short-term creditors are funding less of its operations. Some would claim this reduces the business' efficiency at generating ROCE since it is now funding more of the operations with its own money.
In Conclusion...
To conclude, we've found that Vanov Holdings is reinvesting in the business, but returns have been falling. Yet to long term shareholders the stock has gifted them an incredible 115% return in the last year, so the market appears to be rosy about its future. However, unless these underlying trends turn more positive, we wouldn't get our hopes up too high.
On a final note, we've found 2 warning signs for Vanov Holdings that we think you should be aware of.
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.
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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.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com