Yahoo Finance A.G. BARR's (LON:BAG) Returns On Capital Not Reflecting Well On The Business
Finding a business that has the potential to grow substantially is not easy, but it is possible if we look at a few key financial metrics. Amongst other things, we'll want to see two things; firstly, a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an expansion in the company's amount of capital employed. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. In light of that, when we looked at A.G. BARR (LON:BAG) and its ROCE trend, we weren't exactly thrilled.
Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)
For those who don't know, ROCE is a measure of a company's yearly pre-tax profit (its return), relative to the capital employed in the business. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for A.G. BARR:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.15 = UK£44m ÷ (UK£355m - UK£66m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to July 2022).
So, A.G. BARR has an ROCE of 15%. In absolute terms, that's a satisfactory return, but compared to the Beverage industry average of 9.3% it's much better.
Check out our latest analysis for A.G. BARR
Above you can see how the current ROCE for A.G. BARR compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report for A.G. BARR.
The Trend Of ROCE
When we looked at the ROCE trend at A.G. BARR, we didn't gain much confidence. Around five years ago the returns on capital were 20%, but since then they've fallen to 15%. Although, given both revenue and the amount of assets employed in the business have increased, it could suggest the company is investing in growth, and the extra capital has led to a short-term reduction in ROCE. If these investments prove successful, this can bode very well for long term stock performance.
What We Can Learn From A.G. BARR's ROCE
In summary, despite lower returns in the short term, we're encouraged to see that A.G. BARR is reinvesting for growth and has higher sales as a result. And there could be an opportunity here if other metrics look good too, because the stock has declined 20% in the last five years. So we think it'd be worthwhile to look further into this stock given the trends look encouraging.
If you want to continue researching A.G. BARR, you might be interested to know about the 1 warning sign that our analysis has discovered.
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.
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