Yahoo Finance We Like These Underlying Return On Capital Trends At Perpetual Energy (TSE:PMT)
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. 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. Put simply, these types of businesses are compounding machines, meaning they are continually reinvesting their earnings at ever-higher rates of return. Speaking of which, we noticed some great changes in Perpetual Energy's (TSE:PMT) returns on capital, so let's have a look.
What Is 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. The formula for this calculation on Perpetual Energy is:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.15 = CA$23m ÷ (CA$189m - CA$37m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2022).
So, Perpetual Energy has an ROCE of 15%. That's a relatively normal return on capital, and it's around the 19% generated by the Oil and Gas industry.
Check out our latest analysis for Perpetual Energy
In the above chart we have measured Perpetual Energy's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free report on analyst forecasts for the company.
The Trend Of ROCE
Like most people, we're pleased that Perpetual Energy is now generating some pretax earnings. While the business is profitable now, it used to be incurring losses on invested capital five years ago. Additionally, the business is utilizing 45% less capital than it was five years ago, and taken at face value, that can mean the company needs less funds at work to get a return. This could potentially mean that the company is selling some of its assets.
In Conclusion...
In the end, Perpetual Energy has proven it's capital allocation skills are good with those higher returns from less amount of capital. Since the total return from the stock has been almost flat over the last five years, there might be an opportunity here if the valuation looks good. So researching this company further and determining whether or not these trends will continue seems justified.
One final note, you should learn about the 3 warning signs we've spotted with Perpetual Energy (including 1 which is a bit concerning) .
While Perpetual Energy isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets.
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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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