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.   Firstly, we'd want to identify a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and then alongside that, an ever-increasing base of capital employed.  Put simply, these types of businesses are compounding machines, meaning they are continually reinvesting their earnings at ever-higher rates of return.    Having said that, while the ROCE is currently high for Texas Instruments (NASDAQ:TXN), we aren't jumping out of our chairs because returns are decreasing.    

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

If you haven't worked with ROCE before, it measures the 'return' (pre-tax profit) a company generates from capital employed in its business.  Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Texas Instruments:

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

0.21 = US$6.5b ÷ (US$35b - US$3.6b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2024).

Thus, Texas Instruments has an ROCE of 21%. That's a fantastic return and not only that, it outpaces the average of 9.7% earned by companies in a similar industry.  

NasdaqGS:TXN Return on Capital Employed July 13th 2024

In the above chart we have measured Texas Instruments' prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important.  If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free analyst report for Texas Instruments .

What Can We Tell From Texas Instruments' ROCE Trend?

In terms of Texas Instruments' historical ROCE movements, the trend isn't fantastic.   Historically returns on capital were even higher at 43%, but they have dropped over the last  five years.    Given the business is employing more capital while revenue has slipped, this is a bit concerning.   This could mean that the business is losing its competitive advantage or market share, because while more money is being put into ventures, it's actually producing a lower return - "less bang for their buck" per se.  

In Conclusion...

In summary, we're somewhat concerned by Texas Instruments' diminishing returns on increasing amounts of capital.       But investors must be expecting an improvement of sorts because over the last  five yearsthe stock has delivered a respectable 98% return.   In any case, the current underlying trends don't bode well for long term performance so unless they reverse, we'd start looking elsewhere.  

One final note, you should learn about the   2 warning signs we've spotted with Texas Instruments (including 1 which is concerning) .  

If you want to search for more stocks that have been earning high returns, check out this free list of stocks with solid balance sheets that are also earning high returns on equity.