We're Watching These Trends At Victrex (LON:VCT)

Finding a business that has the potential to grow substantially is not easy, but it is possible if we look at a few key financial metrics. Ideally, a business will show two trends; firstly a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an increasing amount of capital employed. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. Having said that, from a first glance at Victrex (LON:VCT) we aren't jumping out of our chairs at how returns are trending, but let's have a deeper look.

What is 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. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Victrex:

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

0.15 = UK£78m ÷ (UK£550m - UK£38m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2020).

Therefore, Victrex has an ROCE of 15%. On its own, that's a standard return, however it's much better than the 10% generated by the Chemicals industry.

View our latest analysis for Victrex

In the above chart we have measured Victrex's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report for Victrex.

So How Is Victrex's ROCE Trending?

In terms of Victrex's historical ROCE movements, the trend isn't fantastic. Over the last five years, returns on capital have decreased to 15% from 28% five years ago. Meanwhile, the business is utilizing more capital but this hasn't moved the needle much in terms of sales in the past 12 months, so this could reflect longer term investments. It's worth keeping an eye on the company's earnings from here on to see if these investments do end up contributing to the bottom line.

Our Take On Victrex's ROCE

Bringing it all together, while we're somewhat encouraged by Victrex's reinvestment in its own business, we're aware that returns are shrinking. Since the stock has gained an impressive 81% over the last five years, investors must think there's better things to come. But if the trajectory of these underlying trends continue, we think the likelihood of it being a multi-bagger from here isn't high.

On a separate note, we've found 2 warning signs for Victrex you'll probably want to know about.

While Victrex 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. 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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