Returns At Jet2 (LON:JET2) Appear To Be Weighed Down

What trends should we look for it we want to identify stocks that can multiply in value over the long term? Amongst other things, we'll want to see two things; firstly, a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an expansion in the company's amount of capital employed. If you see this, it typically means it's a company with a great business model and plenty of profitable reinvestment opportunities. So, when we ran our eye over Jet2's (LON:JET2) trend of ROCE, we liked what we saw.

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Return On Capital Employed (ROCE): What Is It?

For those that aren't sure what ROCE is, it measures the amount of pre-tax profits a company can generate from the capital employed in its business. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Jet2:

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

0.16 = UK£447m ÷ (UK£5.9b - UK£3.1b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2025).

Thus, Jet2 has an ROCE of 16%. In absolute terms, that's a satisfactory return, but compared to the Airlines industry average of 13% it's much better.

View our latest analysis for Jet2

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Jet2 compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Jet2 for free.

The Trend Of ROCE

The trend of ROCE doesn't stand out much, but returns on a whole are decent. Over the past five years, ROCE has remained relatively flat at around 16% and the business has deployed 61% more capital into its operations. Since 16% is a moderate ROCE though, it's good to see a business can continue to reinvest at these decent rates of return. Over long periods of time, returns like these might not be too exciting, but with consistency they can pay off in terms of share price returns.

On a separate but related note, it's important to know that Jet2 has a current liabilities to total assets ratio of 52%, which we'd consider pretty high. This effectively means that suppliers (or short-term creditors) are funding a large portion of the business, so just be aware that this can introduce some elements of risk. While it's not necessarily a bad thing, it can be beneficial if this ratio is lower.

What We Can Learn From Jet2's ROCE

In the end, Jet2 has proven its ability to adequately reinvest capital at good rates of return. And given the stock has only risen 20% over the last five years, we'd suspect the market is beginning to recognize these trends. That's why it could be worth your time looking into this stock further to discover if it has more traits of a multi-bagger.

One more thing to note, we've identified 1 warning sign with Jet2 and understanding this should be part of your investment process.

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.