Did you know there are some financial metrics that can provide clues of a potential 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. Having said that, from a first glance at Jiangsu Shemar ElectricLtd (SHSE:603530) we aren't jumping out of our chairs at how returns are trending, but let's have a deeper look.

What Is Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)?

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. To calculate this metric for Jiangsu Shemar ElectricLtd, this is the formula:

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

0.056 = CN¥97m ÷ (CN¥2.0b - CN¥317m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2023).

Thus, Jiangsu Shemar ElectricLtd has an ROCE of 5.6%. Even though it's in line with the industry average of 6.3%, it's still a low return by itself.

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're interested in investigating Jiangsu Shemar ElectricLtd's past further, check out this free graph covering Jiangsu Shemar ElectricLtd's past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What Can We Tell From Jiangsu Shemar ElectricLtd's ROCE Trend?

In terms of Jiangsu Shemar ElectricLtd's historical ROCE movements, the trend isn't fantastic. Over the last five years, returns on capital have decreased to 5.6% from 16% five years ago. However it looks like Jiangsu Shemar ElectricLtd might be reinvesting for long term growth because while capital employed has increased, the company's sales haven't changed much in the last 12 months. 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.

The Bottom Line

Bringing it all together, while we're somewhat encouraged by Jiangsu Shemar ElectricLtd's reinvestment in its own business, we're aware that returns are shrinking. And investors may be recognizing these trends since the stock has only returned a total of 6.7% to shareholders over the last three years. As a result, if you're hunting for a multi-bagger, we think you'd have more luck elsewhere.

On a final note, we've found 2 warning signs for Jiangsu Shemar ElectricLtd that we think you should be aware of.

If you want to search for solid companies with great earnings, check out this free list of companies with good balance sheets and impressive 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.