We Like These Underlying Return On Capital Trends At Mr.Bricolage (EPA:ALMRB)

If you're not sure where to start when looking for the next multi-bagger, there are a few key trends you should keep an eye out for. Firstly, we'd want to identify a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and then alongside that, an ever-increasing base of capital employed. Basically this means that a company has profitable initiatives that it can continue to reinvest in, which is a trait of a compounding machine. So on that note, Mr.Bricolage (EPA:ALMRB) looks quite promising in regards to its trends of return on capital.

Understanding 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 Mr.Bricolage is:

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

0.17 = €31m ÷ (€383m - €194m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2021).

Therefore, Mr.Bricolage has an ROCE of 17%. On its own, that's a standard return, however it's much better than the 8.8% generated by the Specialty Retail industry.

See our latest analysis for Mr.Bricolage

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Mr.Bricolage 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 Mr.Bricolage.

What Does the ROCE Trend For Mr.Bricolage Tell Us?

We're pretty happy with how the ROCE has been trending at Mr.Bricolage. We found that the returns on capital employed over the last five years have risen by 324%. The company is now earning €0.2 per dollar of capital employed. Speaking of capital employed, the company is actually utilizing 46% less than it was five years ago, which can be indicative of a business that's improving its efficiency. A business that's shrinking its asset base like this isn't usually typical of a soon to be multi-bagger company.

On a side note, Mr.Bricolage's current liabilities are still rather high at 51% of total assets. This can bring about some risks because the company is basically operating with a rather large reliance on its suppliers or other sorts of short-term creditors. Ideally we'd like to see this reduce as that would mean fewer obligations bearing risks.

The Bottom Line

In summary, it's great to see that Mr.Bricolage has been able to turn things around and earn higher returns on lower amounts of capital. Since the stock has only returned 5.0% 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 final note, you should learn about the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Mr.Bricolage (including 1 which is a bit unpleasant) .

While Mr.Bricolage 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.