There are a few key trends to look for if we want to identify the next multi-bagger. 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. However, after investigating Avista (NYSE:AVA), we don't think it's current trends fit the mold of a multi-bagger.

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

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. The formula for this calculation on Avista is:

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

0.037 = US$258m ÷ (US$7.7b - US$775m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2023).

So, Avista has an ROCE of 3.7%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Integrated Utilities industry average of 4.9%.

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Avista compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Avista for free.

What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us

The trend of ROCE doesn't look fantastic because it's fallen from 5.0% five years ago, while the business's capital employed increased by 35%. Usually this isn't ideal, but given Avista conducted a capital raising before their most recent earnings announcement, that would've likely contributed, at least partially, to the increased capital employed figure. Avista probably hasn't received a full year of earnings yet from the new funds it raised, so these figures should be taken with a grain of salt.

The Bottom Line

In summary, Avista is reinvesting funds back into the business for growth but unfortunately it looks like sales haven't increased much just yet. And investors may be recognizing these trends since the stock has only returned a total of 3.0% to shareholders over the last five years. So if you're looking for a multi-bagger, the underlying trends indicate you may have better chances elsewhere.

One final note, you should learn about the 3 warning signs we've spotted with Avista (including 1 which makes us a bit uncomfortable) .

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.