Did you know there are some financial metrics that can provide clues of a potential multi-bagger? Ideally, a business will show two trends; firstly a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an increasing amount of capital employed. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. Having said that, from a first glance at Blue Moon Group Holdings (HKG:6993) we aren't jumping out of our chairs at how returns are trending, but let's have a deeper 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. To calculate this metric for Blue Moon Group Holdings, this is the formula:

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

0.012 = HK$126m ÷ (HK$12b - HK$1.4b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2023).

So, Blue Moon Group Holdings has an ROCE of 1.2%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Household Products industry average of 3.5%.

In the above chart we have measured Blue Moon Group Holdings' 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 analyst report for Blue Moon Group Holdings .

So How Is Blue Moon Group Holdings' ROCE Trending?

On the surface, the trend of ROCE at Blue Moon Group Holdings doesn't inspire confidence. Over the last five years, returns on capital have decreased to 1.2% from 34% five years ago. However it looks like Blue Moon Group 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's worth keeping an eye on the company's earnings from here on to see if these investments do end up contributing to the bottom line.

On a related note, Blue Moon Group Holdings has decreased its current liabilities to 12% 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.

The Key Takeaway

Bringing it all together, while we're somewhat encouraged by Blue Moon Group Holdings' reinvestment in its own business, we're aware that returns are shrinking. Moreover, since the stock has crumbled 76% over the last three years, it appears investors are expecting the worst. In any case, the stock doesn't have these traits of a multi-bagger discussed above, so if that's what you're looking for, we think you'd have more luck elsewhere.

If you want to continue researching Blue Moon Group Holdings, you might be interested to know about the 1 warning sign that our analysis has discovered.

While Blue Moon Group Holdings 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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com