APL Apollo Tubes (NSE:APLAPOLLO) Is Aiming To Keep Up Its Impressive Returns

What trends should we look for it we want to identify stocks that can multiply in value over the long term? In a perfect world, we'd like to see a company investing more capital into its business and ideally the returns earned from that capital are also increasing. Put simply, these types of businesses are compounding machines, meaning they are continually reinvesting their earnings at ever-higher rates of return. With that in mind, the ROCE of APL Apollo Tubes (NSE:APLAPOLLO) looks attractive right now, so lets see what the trend of returns can tell us.

Understanding 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 APL Apollo Tubes:

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

0.28 = ₹8.4b ÷ (₹45b - ₹14b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2022).

So, APL Apollo Tubes has an ROCE of 28%. In absolute terms that's a great return and it's even better than the Metals and Mining industry average of 17%.

Check out our latest analysis for APL Apollo Tubes

Above you can see how the current ROCE for APL Apollo Tubes compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

How Are Returns Trending?

In terms of APL Apollo Tubes' history of ROCE, it's quite impressive. Over the past five years, ROCE has remained relatively flat at around 28% and the business has deployed 235% more capital into its operations. Now considering ROCE is an attractive 28%, this combination is actually pretty appealing because it means the business can consistently put money to work and generate these high returns. If these trends can continue, it wouldn't surprise us if the company became a multi-bagger.

On a side note, APL Apollo Tubes has done well to reduce current liabilities to 32% of total assets over the last five years. Effectively suppliers now fund less of the business, which can lower some elements of risk.

In Conclusion...

In the end, the company has proven it can reinvest it's capital at high rates of returns, which you'll remember is a trait of a multi-bagger. And the stock has done incredibly well with a 548% return over the last five years, so long term investors are no doubt ecstatic with that result. So while the positive underlying trends may be accounted for by investors, we still think this stock is worth looking into further.

Like most companies, APL Apollo Tubes does come with some risks, and we've found 1 warning sign that you should be aware of.

APL Apollo Tubes is not the only stock earning high returns. If you'd like to see more, check out our free list of companies earning high returns on equity with solid fundamentals.

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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.