Returns At ALBA (FRA:ABA) Are On The Way Up

If we want to find a potential multi-bagger, often there are underlying trends that can provide clues. Firstly, we'd want to identify a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and then alongside that, an ever-increasing base 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. So on that note, ALBA (FRA:ABA) looks quite promising in regards to its trends of return on capital.

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

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 ALBA is:

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

0.028 = €4.6m ÷ (€212m - €45m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2021).

Therefore, ALBA has an ROCE of 2.8%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Commercial Services industry average of 11%.

Check out our latest analysis for ALBA

Historical performance is a great place to start when researching a stock so above you can see the gauge for ALBA's ROCE against it's prior returns. If you're interested in investigating ALBA's past further, check out this free graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What Can We Tell From ALBA's ROCE Trend?

ALBA has broken into the black (profitability) and we're sure it's a sight for sore eyes. The company now earns 2.8% on its capital, because five years ago it was incurring losses. On top of that, what's interesting is that the amount of capital being employed has remained steady, so the business hasn't needed to put any additional money to work to generate these higher returns. That being said, while an increase in efficiency is no doubt appealing, it'd be helpful to know if the company does have any investment plans going forward. So if you're looking for high growth, you'll want to see a business's capital employed also increasing.

One more thing to note, ALBA has decreased current liabilities to 21% of total assets over this period, which effectively reduces the amount of funding from suppliers or short-term creditors. So this improvement in ROCE has come from the business' underlying economics, which is great to see.

Our Take On ALBA's ROCE

To sum it up, ALBA is collecting higher returns from the same amount of capital, and that's impressive. Considering the stock has delivered 33% to its stockholders over the last five years, it may be fair to think that investors aren't fully aware of the promising trends yet. So exploring more about this stock could uncover a good opportunity, if the valuation and other metrics stack up.

If you'd like to know about the risks facing ALBA, we've discovered 2 warning signs that you should be aware of.

For those who like to invest in solid companies, check out this free list of companies with solid balance sheets and high returns on equity.

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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