SinoMedia Holding (HKG:623) Is Finding It Tricky To Allocate Its Capital

When researching a stock for investment, what can tell us that the company is in decline? When we see a declining return on capital employed (ROCE) in conjunction with a declining base of capital employed, that's often how a mature business shows signs of aging. This indicates the company is producing less profit from its investments and its total assets are decreasing. So after glancing at the trends within SinoMedia Holding (HKG:623), we weren't too hopeful.

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. To calculate this metric for SinoMedia Holding, this is the formula:

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

0.051 = CN¥84m ÷ (CN¥2.1b - CN¥435m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2020).

Therefore, SinoMedia Holding has an ROCE of 5.1%. In absolute terms, that's a low return but it's around the Media industry average of 6.2%.

Check out our latest analysis for SinoMedia Holding

While the past is not representative of the future, it can be helpful to know how a company has performed historically, which is why we have this chart above. If you want to delve into the historical earnings, revenue and cash flow of SinoMedia Holding, check out these free graphs here.

The Trend Of ROCE

In terms of SinoMedia Holding's historical ROCE movements, the trend doesn't inspire confidence. To be more specific, the ROCE was 11% five years ago, but since then it has dropped noticeably. On top of that, it's worth noting that the amount of capital employed within the business has remained relatively steady. Companies that exhibit these attributes tend to not be shrinking, but they can be mature and facing pressure on their margins from competition. So because these trends aren't typically conducive to creating a multi-bagger, we wouldn't hold our breath on SinoMedia Holding becoming one if things continue as they have.

Our Take On SinoMedia Holding's ROCE

In the end, the trend of lower returns on the same amount of capital isn't typically an indication that we're looking at a growth stock. Despite the concerning underlying trends, the stock has actually gained 1.6% over the last five years, so it might be that the investors are expecting the trends to reverse. Either way, we aren't huge fans of the current trends and so with that we think you might find better investments elsewhere.

One more thing to note, we've identified 3 warning signs with SinoMedia Holding and understanding these should be part of your investment process.

While SinoMedia Holding 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. 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.
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