Returns On Capital At Under Armour (NYSE:UAA) Have Hit The Brakes

Did you know there are some financial metrics that can provide clues of a potential multi-bagger? Firstly, we'll want to see a proven return on capital employed (ROCE) that is increasing, and secondly, 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 Under Armour's (NYSE:UAA) ROCE trend, we were pretty happy with what we saw.

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 Under Armour, this is the formula:

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

0.16 = US$543m ÷ (US$4.8b - US$1.4b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2021).

So, Under Armour has an ROCE of 16%. That's a relatively normal return on capital, and it's around the 14% generated by the Luxury industry.

See our latest analysis for Under Armour

roce

In the above chart we have measured Under Armour's 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 report for Under Armour.

What Can We Tell From Under Armour's ROCE Trend?

While the current returns on capital are decent, they haven't changed much. Over the past five years, ROCE has remained relatively flat at around 16% and the business has deployed 23% more capital into its operations. Since 16% is a moderate ROCE though, it's good to see a business can continue to reinvest at these decent rates of return. Over long periods of time, returns like these might not be too exciting, but with consistency they can pay off in terms of share price returns.

The Bottom Line On Under Armour's ROCE

In the end, Under Armour has proven its ability to adequately reinvest capital at good rates of return. However, despite the favorable fundamentals, the stock has fallen 19% over the last five years, so there might be an opportunity here for astute investors. That's why we think it'd be worthwhile to look further into this stock given the fundamentals are appealing.

One more thing to note, we've identified 1 warning sign with Under Armour and understanding this should be part of your investment process.

While Under Armour 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.

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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