Did you know there are some financial metrics that can provide clues of a potential multi-bagger? 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. This shows us that it's a compounding machine, able to continually reinvest its earnings back into the business and generate higher returns. Having said that, from a first glance at Electric Connector Technology (SZSE:300679) we aren't jumping out of our chairs at how returns are trending, but let's have a deeper look.

Return On Capital Employed (ROCE): What Is It?

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. To calculate this metric for Electric Connector Technology, this is the formula:

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

0.036 = CN¥166m ÷ (CN¥5.8b - CN¥1.2b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2023).

Thus, Electric Connector Technology has an ROCE of 3.6%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Electronic industry average of 5.3%.

View our latest analysis for Electric Connector Technology

In the above chart we have measured Electric Connector Technology's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Electric Connector Technology here for free.

How Are Returns Trending?

In terms of Electric Connector Technology's historical ROCE movements, the trend isn't fantastic. To be more specific, ROCE has fallen from 9.4% over the last five years. Given the business is employing more capital while revenue has slipped, this is a bit concerning. This could mean that the business is losing its competitive advantage or market share, because while more money is being put into ventures, it's actually producing a lower return - "less bang for their buck" per se.

While on the subject, we noticed that the ratio of current liabilities to total assets has risen to 21%, which has impacted the ROCE. If current liabilities hadn't increased as much as they did, the ROCE could actually be even lower. Keep an eye on this ratio, because the business could encounter some new risks if this metric gets too high.

The Bottom Line

In summary, we're somewhat concerned by Electric Connector Technology's diminishing returns on increasing amounts of capital. The market must be rosy on the stock's future because even though the underlying trends aren't too encouraging, the stock has soared 237%. In any case, the current underlying trends don't bode well for long term performance so unless they reverse, we'd start looking elsewhere.

If you want to continue researching Electric Connector Technology, you might be interested to know about the 1 warning sign that our analysis has discovered.

While Electric Connector Technology isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are 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.