Did you know there are some financial metrics that can provide clues of a potential multi-bagger? Typically, we'll want to notice a trend of growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and alongside that, an expanding base 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. That's why when we briefly looked at Zengame Technology Holding's (HKG:2660) ROCE trend, we were very happy with what we saw.

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 Zengame Technology Holding:

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

0.45 = CN¥901m ÷ (CN¥2.5b - CN¥464m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2023).

Therefore, Zengame Technology Holding has an ROCE of 45%. In absolute terms that's a great return and it's even better than the Entertainment industry average of 6.5%.

Check out our latest analysis for Zengame Technology Holding

While the past is not representative of the future, it can be helpful to know how a company has performed historically, which is why we have this chart above. If you'd like to look at how Zengame Technology Holding has performed in the past in other metrics, you can view this free graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

How Are Returns Trending?

We'd be pretty happy with returns on capital like Zengame Technology Holding. Over the past five years, ROCE has remained relatively flat at around 45% and the business has deployed 707% more capital into its operations. With returns that high, it's great that the business can continually reinvest its money at such appealing rates of return. You'll see this when looking at well operated businesses or favorable business models.

The Bottom Line

In summary, we're delighted to see that Zengame Technology Holding has been compounding returns by reinvesting at consistently high rates of return, as these are common traits of a multi-bagger. On top of that, the stock has rewarded shareholders with a remarkable 449% return to those who've held over the last three years. So while the positive underlying trends may be accounted for by investors, we still think this stock is worth looking into further.

Zengame Technology Holding does have some risks though, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Zengame Technology Holding that you might be interested in.

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.

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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.