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. Typically, we'll want to notice a trend of growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and alongside that, an expanding base of capital employed. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. However, after briefly looking over the numbers, we don't think Ameresco (NYSE:AMRC) has the makings of a multi-bagger going forward, but let's have a look at why that may be.

What Is Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)?

If you haven't worked with ROCE before, it measures the 'return' (pre-tax profit) a company generates from capital employed in its business. To calculate this metric for Ameresco, this is the formula:

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

0.03 = US$86m ÷ (US$3.7b - US$901m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2023).

So, Ameresco has an ROCE of 3.0%. Ultimately, that's a low return and it under-performs the Construction industry average of 12%.

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Ameresco compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Ameresco for free.

What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us

On the surface, the trend of ROCE at Ameresco doesn't inspire confidence. To be more specific, ROCE has fallen from 6.3% over the last five years. Given the business is employing more capital while revenue has slipped, this is a bit concerning. If this were to continue, you might be looking at a company that is trying to reinvest for growth but is actually losing market share since sales haven't increased.

In Conclusion...

From the above analysis, we find it rather worrisome that returns on capital and sales for Ameresco have fallen, meanwhile the business is employing more capital than it was five years ago. Despite the concerning underlying trends, the stock has actually gained 22% over the last five years, so it might be that the investors are expecting the trends to reverse. Either way, we aren't huge fans of the current trends and so with that we think you might find better investments elsewhere.

Ameresco does have some risks though, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Ameresco that you might be interested in.

While Ameresco may not currently earn the highest returns, we've compiled a list of companies that currently earn more than 25% return on equity. Check out this free list here.

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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.