Melexis (EBR:MELE) Knows How To Allocate Capital

If we want to find a stock that could multiply over the long term, what are the underlying trends we should look for? 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. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. So, when we ran our eye over Melexis' (EBR:MELE) trend of ROCE, we really liked what we saw.

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. The formula for this calculation on Melexis is:

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

0.37 = €258m ÷ (€799m - €111m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2023).

Thus, Melexis has an ROCE of 37%. That's a fantastic return and not only that, it outpaces the average of 18% earned by companies in a similar industry.

See our latest analysis for Melexis

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Melexis 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 Melexis.

The Trend Of ROCE

In terms of Melexis' history of ROCE, it's quite impressive. The company has consistently earned 37% for the last five years, and the capital employed within the business has risen 89% in that time. With returns that high, it's great that the business can continually reinvest its money at such appealing rates of return. You'll see this when looking at well operated businesses or favorable business models.

Our Take On Melexis' ROCE

In summary, we're delighted to see that Melexis has been compounding returns by reinvesting at consistently high rates of return, as these are common traits of a multi-bagger. And the stock has followed suit returning a meaningful 66% to shareholders over the last five years. So even though the stock might be more "expensive" than it was before, we think the strong fundamentals warrant this stock for further research.

If you want to know some of the risks facing Melexis we've found 2 warning signs (1 is a bit unpleasant!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

If you'd like to see other companies earning high returns, check out our free list of companies earning high returns with solid balance sheets here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.