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. 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 Chengdu KSW TechnologiesLtd (SHSE:688283) we aren't jumping out of our chairs at how returns are trending, but let's have a deeper look.

Understanding 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. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Chengdu KSW TechnologiesLtd:

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

0.084 = CN¥80m ÷ (CN¥1.0b - CN¥80m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2023).

Therefore, Chengdu KSW TechnologiesLtd has an ROCE of 8.4%. In absolute terms, that's a low return, but it's much better than the Communications industry average of 5.1%.

Check out our latest analysis for Chengdu KSW TechnologiesLtd

In the above chart we have measured Chengdu KSW TechnologiesLtd's 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.

So How Is Chengdu KSW TechnologiesLtd's ROCE Trending?

In terms of Chengdu KSW TechnologiesLtd's historical ROCE movements, the trend isn't fantastic. To be more specific, ROCE has fallen from 22% over the last five years. However, given capital employed and revenue have both increased it appears that the business is currently pursuing growth, at the consequence of short term returns. And if the increased capital generates additional returns, the business, and thus shareholders, will benefit in the long run.

On a side note, Chengdu KSW TechnologiesLtd has done well to pay down its current liabilities to 7.7% of total assets. So we could link some of this to the decrease in ROCE. 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. Since the business is basically funding more of its operations with it's own money, you could argue this has made the business less efficient at generating ROCE.

The Bottom Line

While returns have fallen for Chengdu KSW TechnologiesLtd in recent times, we're encouraged to see that sales are growing and that the business is reinvesting in its operations. And the stock has followed suit returning a meaningful 12% to shareholders over the last year. So while investors seem to be recognizing these promising trends, we would look further into this stock to make sure the other metrics justify the positive view.

One more thing to note, we've identified 1 warning sign with Chengdu KSW TechnologiesLtd and understanding this should be part of your investment process.

While Chengdu KSW TechnologiesLtd 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.