Société BIC (EPA:BB) May Have Issues Allocating Its Capital

What financial metrics can indicate to us that a company is maturing or even in decline? A business that's potentially in decline often shows two trends, a return on capital employed (ROCE) that's declining, and a base of capital employed that's also declining. Trends like this ultimately mean the business is reducing its investments and also earning less on what it has invested. On that note, looking into Société BIC (EPA:BB), we weren't too upbeat about how things were going.

Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)

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 Société BIC:

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

0.15 = €312m ÷ (€2.8b - €751m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2022).

So, Société BIC has an ROCE of 15%. In absolute terms, that's a satisfactory return, but compared to the Commercial Services industry average of 9.7% it's much better.

See our latest analysis for Société BIC

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Société BIC 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 Société BIC.

What Can We Tell From Société BIC's ROCE Trend?

There is reason to be cautious about Société BIC, given the returns are trending downwards. About five years ago, returns on capital were 21%, however they're now substantially lower than that as we saw above. And on the capital employed front, the business is utilizing roughly the same amount of capital as it was back then. Companies that exhibit these attributes tend to not be shrinking, but they can be mature and facing pressure on their margins from competition. If these trends continue, we wouldn't expect Société BIC to turn into a multi-bagger.

The Bottom Line

In summary, it's unfortunate that Société BIC is generating lower returns from the same amount of capital. Investors haven't taken kindly to these developments, since the stock has declined 14% from where it was five years ago. With underlying trends that aren't great in these areas, we'd consider looking elsewhere.

One more thing, we've spotted 2 warning signs facing Société BIC that you might find interesting.

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.

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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.