When it comes to investing, there are some useful financial metrics that can warn us when a business is potentially in trouble. Typically, we'll see the trend of both return on capital employed (ROCE) declining and this usually coincides with a decreasing amount of capital employed. Ultimately this means that the company is earning less per dollar invested and on top of that, it's shrinking its base of capital employed. Having said that, after a brief look, Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) we aren't filled with optimism, but let's investigate further.

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. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Compass Minerals International:

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

0.051 = US$79m ÷ (US$1.8b - US$276m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2023).

Therefore, Compass Minerals International has an ROCE of 5.1%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Metals and Mining industry average of 9.7%.

Check out our latest analysis for Compass Minerals International

In the above chart we have measured Compass Minerals International'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 Compass Minerals International.

The Trend Of ROCE

We aren't too thrilled by the trend because ROCE has declined 26% over the last five years and despite the capital raising conducted before the latest reports, the business has -27% less capital employed.

The Bottom Line

In short, lower returns and decreasing amounts capital employed in the business doesn't fill us with confidence. Investors haven't taken kindly to these developments, since the stock has declined 23% from where it was five years ago. Unless there is a shift to a more positive trajectory in these metrics, we would look elsewhere.

Since virtually every company faces some risks, it's worth knowing what they are, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Compass Minerals International (of which 2 can't be ignored!) that you should know about.

While Compass Minerals International may not currently earn the highest returns, we've compiled a list of companies that currently earn more than 25% return on equity. Check out this free list here.

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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.