What Do The Returns At Jiangxi Copper (HKG:358) Mean Going Forward?

To find a multi-bagger stock, what are the underlying trends we should look for in a business? One common approach is to try and find a company with returns on capital employed (ROCE) that are increasing, in conjunction with a growing amount 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. With that in mind, we've noticed some promising trends at Jiangxi Copper (HKG:358) so let's look a bit deeper.

What is Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)?

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. To calculate this metric for Jiangxi Copper, this is the formula:

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

0.074 = CN¥5.6b ÷ (CN¥146b - CN¥70b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2020).

Therefore, Jiangxi Copper has an ROCE of 7.4%. On its own that's a low return on capital but it's in line with the industry's average returns of 7.5%.

See our latest analysis for Jiangxi Copper

In the above chart we have measured Jiangxi Copper'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 report on analyst forecasts for the company.

What Can We Tell From Jiangxi Copper's ROCE Trend?

We're glad to see that ROCE is heading in the right direction, even if it is still low at the moment. The numbers show that in the last five years, the returns generated on capital employed have grown considerably to 7.4%. The amount of capital employed has increased too, by 53%. The increasing returns on a growing amount of capital is common amongst multi-baggers and that's why we're impressed.

On a side note, Jiangxi Copper's current liabilities are still rather high at 48% of total assets. 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 Jiangxi Copper's ROCE

To sum it up, Jiangxi Copper has proven it can reinvest in the business and generate higher returns on that capital employed, which is terrific. And investors seem to expect more of this going forward, since the stock has rewarded shareholders with a 75% return over the last five years. In light of that, we think it's worth looking further into this stock because if Jiangxi Copper can keep these trends up, it could have a bright future ahead.

If you'd like to know more about Jiangxi Copper, we've spotted 4 warning signs, and 1 of them makes us a bit uncomfortable.

While Jiangxi Copper isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets.

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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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