Returns On Capital At Aegean Airlines (ATH:AEGN) Have Stalled

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. With that in mind, the ROCE of Aegean Airlines (ATH:AEGN) looks decent, right now, so lets see what the trend of returns can tell us.

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What Is 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 Aegean Airlines:

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

0.11 = €232m ÷ (€3.0b - €893m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2025).

So, Aegean Airlines has an ROCE of 11%. That's a relatively normal return on capital, and it's around the 9.9% generated by the Airlines industry.

View our latest analysis for Aegean Airlines

In the above chart we have measured Aegean Airlines' prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Aegean Airlines for free.

The Trend Of ROCE

While the current returns on capital are decent, they haven't changed much. The company has consistently earned 11% for the last five years, and the capital employed within the business has risen 171% in that time. 11% is a pretty standard return, and it provides some comfort knowing that Aegean Airlines has consistently earned this amount. 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.

One more thing to note, even though ROCE has remained relatively flat over the last five years, the reduction in current liabilities to 30% of total assets, is good to see from a business owner's perspective. This can eliminate some of the risks inherent in the operations because the business has less outstanding obligations to their suppliers and or short-term creditors than they did previously.

What We Can Learn From Aegean Airlines' ROCE

The main thing to remember is that Aegean Airlines has proven its ability to continually reinvest at respectable rates of return. And long term investors would be thrilled with the 367% return they've received over the last five years. So while the positive underlying trends may be accounted for by investors, we still think this stock is worth looking into further.

On a final note, we found 2 warning signs for Aegean Airlines (1 is significant) you should be aware of.

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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.