Wienerberger (VIE:WIE) Is Looking To Continue Growing Its Returns On Capital

Did you know there are some financial metrics that can provide clues of a potential multi-bagger? Ideally, a business will show two trends; firstly a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an increasing amount of capital employed. Put simply, these types of businesses are compounding machines, meaning they are continually reinvesting their earnings at ever-higher rates of return. With that in mind, we've noticed some promising trends at Wienerberger (VIE:WIE) so let's look a bit deeper.

Return On Capital Employed (ROCE): What is it?

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

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

0.14 = €538m ÷ (€5.0b - €1.1b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2022).

So, Wienerberger has an ROCE of 14%. On its own, that's a standard return, however it's much better than the 9.4% generated by the Basic Materials industry.

View our latest analysis for Wienerberger

In the above chart we have measured Wienerberger's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Wienerberger here for free.

What Does the ROCE Trend For Wienerberger Tell Us?

The trends we've noticed at Wienerberger are quite reassuring. The numbers show that in the last five years, the returns generated on capital employed have grown considerably to 14%. The company is effectively making more money per dollar of capital used, and it's worth noting that the amount of capital has increased too, by 41%. So we're very much inspired by what we're seeing at Wienerberger thanks to its ability to profitably reinvest capital.

The Key Takeaway

All in all, it's terrific to see that Wienerberger is reaping the rewards from prior investments and is growing its capital base. Since the stock has only returned 37% to shareholders over the last five years, the promising fundamentals may not be recognized yet by investors. So with that in mind, we think the stock deserves further research.

One more thing to note, we've identified 3 warning signs with Wienerberger and understanding these should be part of your investment process.

While Wienerberger 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.