There are a few key trends to look for if we want to identify the next multi-bagger. Firstly, we'll want to see a proven return on capital employed (ROCE) that is increasing, and secondly, an expanding base 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. So when we looked at Shanghai Xinhua Media (SHSE:600825) and its trend of ROCE, we really liked what we saw.

Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)

Just to clarify if you're unsure, ROCE is a metric for evaluating how much pre-tax income (in percentage terms) a company earns on the capital invested in its business. To calculate this metric for Shanghai Xinhua Media, this is the formula:

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

0.0022 = CN¥5.9m ÷ (CN¥4.3b - CN¥1.5b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2023).

Thus, Shanghai Xinhua Media has an ROCE of 0.2%. Ultimately, that's a low return and it under-performs the Media industry average of 5.1%.

View our latest analysis for Shanghai Xinhua Media

While the past is not representative of the future, it can be helpful to know how a company has performed historically, which is why we have this chart above. If you'd like to look at how Shanghai Xinhua Media has performed in the past in other metrics, you can view this free graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us

Shareholders will be relieved that Shanghai Xinhua Media has broken into profitability. The company was generating losses five years ago, but has managed to turn it around and as we saw earlier is now earning 0.2%, which is always encouraging. While returns have increased, the amount of capital employed by Shanghai Xinhua Media has remained flat over the period. That being said, while an increase in efficiency is no doubt appealing, it'd be helpful to know if the company does have any investment plans going forward. So if you're looking for high growth, you'll want to see a business's capital employed also increasing.

The Bottom Line

To sum it up, Shanghai Xinhua Media is collecting higher returns from the same amount of capital, and that's impressive. Since the stock has only returned 17% to shareholders over the last five years, the promising fundamentals may not be recognized yet by investors. Given that, we'd look further into this stock in case it has more traits that could make it multiply in the long term.

On a separate note, we've found 1 warning sign for Shanghai Xinhua Media you'll probably want to know about.

For those who like to invest in solid companies, check out this free list of companies with solid balance sheets and high 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.