If you're looking for a multi-bagger, there's a few things to keep an eye out for. Firstly, we'll want to see a proven return on capital employed (ROCE) that is increasing, and secondly, an expanding base of capital employed. Basically this means that a company has profitable initiatives that it can continue to reinvest in, which is a trait of a compounding machine. In light of that, when we looked at MillerKnoll (NASDAQ:MLKN) and its ROCE trend, we weren't exactly thrilled.

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

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. To calculate this metric for MillerKnoll, this is the formula:

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

0.069 = US$239m ÷ (US$4.2b - US$714m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2023).

Therefore, MillerKnoll has an ROCE of 6.9%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Commercial Services industry average of 9.1%.

In the above chart we have measured MillerKnoll'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 MillerKnoll.

What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us

When we looked at the ROCE trend at MillerKnoll, we didn't gain much confidence. Around five years ago the returns on capital were 17%, but since then they've fallen to 6.9%. 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.

On a related note, MillerKnoll has decreased its current liabilities to 17% of total assets. So we could link some of this to the decrease in ROCE. Effectively this means their suppliers or short-term creditors are funding less of the business, which reduces some elements of risk. Some would claim this reduces the business' efficiency at generating ROCE since it is now funding more of the operations with its own money.

Our Take On MillerKnoll's ROCE

From the above analysis, we find it rather worrisome that returns on capital and sales for MillerKnoll have fallen, meanwhile the business is employing more capital than it was five years ago. Investors haven't taken kindly to these developments, since the stock has declined 15% from where it was five years ago. With underlying trends that aren't great in these areas, we'd consider looking elsewhere.

One more thing: We've identified 4 warning signs with MillerKnoll (at least 1 which is a bit concerning) , and understanding these would certainly be useful.

While MillerKnoll 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.