CITIC's (HKG:267) Returns On Capital Not Reflecting Well On The Business

Did you know there are some financial metrics that can provide clues of a potential multi-bagger? Typically, we'll want to notice a trend of growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and alongside that, an expanding base of capital employed. This shows us that it's a compounding machine, able to continually reinvest its earnings back into the business and generate higher returns. Having said that, from a first glance at CITIC (HKG:267) we aren't jumping out of our chairs at how returns are trending, but let's have a deeper look.

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Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)

Just to clarify if you're unsure, ROCE is a metric for evaluating how much pre-tax income (in percentage terms) a company earns on the capital invested in its business. To calculate this metric for CITIC, this is the formula:

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

0.031 = CN¥317b ÷ (CN¥12t - CN¥2.1t) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2025).

Thus, CITIC has an ROCE of 3.1%. On its own that's a low return on capital but it's in line with the industry's average returns of 2.6%.

See our latest analysis for CITIC

In the above chart we have measured CITIC's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free analyst report for CITIC .

The Trend Of ROCE

On the surface, the trend of ROCE at CITIC doesn't inspire confidence. To be more specific, ROCE has fallen from 5.6% over the last five years. Although, given both revenue and the amount of assets employed in the business have increased, it could suggest the company is investing in growth, and the extra capital has led to a short-term reduction in ROCE. If these investments prove successful, this can bode very well for long term stock performance.

On a related note, CITIC has decreased its current liabilities to 17% of total assets. That could partly explain why the ROCE has dropped. Effectively this means their suppliers or short-term creditors are funding less of the business, which reduces some elements of risk. Some would claim this reduces the business' efficiency at generating ROCE since it is now funding more of the operations with its own money.

What We Can Learn From CITIC's ROCE

In summary, despite lower returns in the short term, we're encouraged to see that CITIC is reinvesting for growth and has higher sales as a result. And long term investors must be optimistic going forward because the stock has returned a huge 213% to shareholders in the last five years. So while the underlying trends could already be accounted for by investors, we still think this stock is worth looking into further.

While CITIC doesn't shine too bright in this respect, it's still worth seeing if the company is trading at attractive prices. You can find that out with our FREE intrinsic value estimation for 267 on our platform.

While CITIC 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.