If you're not sure where to start when looking for the next multi-bagger, there are a few key trends you should keep an eye out for. Amongst other things, we'll want to see two things; firstly, a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an expansion in the company's amount of capital employed. 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 investigating Hengli PetrochemicalLtd (SHSE:600346), 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 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. The formula for this calculation on Hengli PetrochemicalLtd is:

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

0.032 = CN¥4.4b ÷ (CN¥262b - CN¥123b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2023).

Thus, Hengli PetrochemicalLtd has an ROCE of 3.2%. Ultimately, that's a low return and it under-performs the Chemicals industry average of 5.5%.

View our latest analysis for Hengli PetrochemicalLtd

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Hengli PetrochemicalLtd compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report for Hengli PetrochemicalLtd.

What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us

In terms of Hengli PetrochemicalLtd's historical ROCE movements, the trend isn't fantastic. To be more specific, ROCE has fallen from 10% over the last five years. Meanwhile, the business is utilizing more capital but this hasn't moved the needle much in terms of sales in the past 12 months, so this could reflect longer term investments. 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 side note, Hengli PetrochemicalLtd's current liabilities are still rather high at 47% of total assets. This effectively means that suppliers (or short-term creditors) are funding a large portion of the business, so just be aware that this can introduce some elements of risk. Ideally we'd like to see this reduce as that would mean fewer obligations bearing risks.

The Bottom Line On Hengli PetrochemicalLtd's ROCE

To conclude, we've found that Hengli PetrochemicalLtd is reinvesting in the business, but returns have been falling. Since the stock has gained an impressive 59% over the last five years, investors must think there's better things to come. However, unless these underlying trends turn more positive, we wouldn't get our hopes up too high.

Hengli PetrochemicalLtd does come with some risks though, we found 3 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 1 of those can't be ignored...

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.