What are the early trends we should look for to identify a stock that could multiply in value over the long term? In a perfect world, we'd like to see a company investing more capital into its business and ideally the returns earned from that capital are also increasing. Basically this means that a company has profitable initiatives that it can continue to reinvest in, which is a trait of a compounding machine. However, after briefly looking over the numbers, we don't think COSCO SHIPPING Ports (HKG:1199) has the makings of a multi-bagger going forward, but let's have a look at why that may be.

What Is Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)?

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 COSCO SHIPPING Ports, this is the formula:

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

0.025 = US$253m ÷ (US$11b - US$1.3b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2023).

Thus, COSCO SHIPPING Ports has an ROCE of 2.5%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Infrastructure industry average of 7.2%.

Check out our latest analysis for COSCO SHIPPING Ports

In the above chart we have measured COSCO SHIPPING Ports' prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

What Does the ROCE Trend For COSCO SHIPPING Ports Tell Us?

In terms of COSCO SHIPPING Ports' historical ROCE trend, it doesn't exactly demand attention. Over the past five years, ROCE has remained relatively flat at around 2.5% and the business has deployed 23% more capital into its operations. Given the company has increased the amount of capital employed, it appears the investments that have been made simply don't provide a high return on capital.

Our Take On COSCO SHIPPING Ports' ROCE

In summary, COSCO SHIPPING Ports has simply been reinvesting capital and generating the same low rate of return as before. Since the stock has declined 17% over the last five years, investors may not be too optimistic on this trend improving either. All in all, the inherent trends aren't typical of multi-baggers, so if that's what you're after, we think you might have more luck elsewhere.

On a separate note, we've found 2 warning signs for COSCO SHIPPING Ports you'll probably want to know about.

If you want to search for solid companies with great earnings, check out this free list of companies with good balance sheets and impressive 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.