To find a multi-bagger stock, what are the underlying trends we should look for in a business? One common approach is to try and find a company with returns on capital employed (ROCE) that are increasing, in conjunction with a growing amount 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. With that in mind, we've noticed some promising trends at Aspen Aerogels (NYSE:ASPN) so let's look a bit deeper.

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

Just to clarify if you're unsure, ROCE is a metric for evaluating how much pre-tax income (in percentage terms) a company earns on the capital invested in its business. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Aspen Aerogels:

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

0.024 = US$16m ÷ (US$749m - US$83m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2024).

Thus, Aspen Aerogels has an ROCE of 2.4%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Chemicals industry average of 8.9%.

In the above chart we have measured Aspen Aerogels' 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 Aspen Aerogels .

What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us

The fact that Aspen Aerogels is now generating some pre-tax profits from its prior investments is very encouraging. Shareholders would no doubt be pleased with this because the business was loss-making five years ago but is is now generating 2.4% on its capital. In addition to that, Aspen Aerogels is employing 766% more capital than previously which is expected of a company that's trying to break into profitability. We like this trend, because it tells us the company has profitable reinvestment opportunities available to it, and if it continues going forward that can lead to a multi-bagger performance.

On a related note, the company's ratio of current liabilities to total assets has decreased to 11%, which basically reduces it's funding from the likes of short-term creditors or suppliers. Therefore we can rest assured that the growth in ROCE is a result of the business' fundamental improvements, rather than a cooking class featuring this company's books.

The Key Takeaway

Overall, Aspen Aerogels gets a big tick from us thanks in most part to the fact that it is now profitable and is reinvesting in its business. And a remarkable 290% total return over the last five years tells us that investors are expecting more good things to come in the future. In light of that, we think it's worth looking further into this stock because if Aspen Aerogels can keep these trends up, it could have a bright future ahead.

One final note, you should learn about the 3 warning signs we've spotted with Aspen Aerogels (including 1 which is a bit unpleasant) .

While Aspen Aerogels isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets.

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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.