If we want to find a potential multi-bagger, often there are underlying trends that can provide clues. 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. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. Having said that, from a first glance at Iren (BIT:IRE) we aren't jumping out of our chairs at how returns are trending, but let's have a deeper look.
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. The formula for this calculation on Iren is:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.053 = €394m ÷ (€9.0b - €1.6b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2020).
Thus, Iren has an ROCE of 5.3%. Even though it's in line with the industry average of 4.5%, it's still a low return by itself.
Check out our latest analysis for Iren
In the above chart we have measured Iren's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report for Iren.
What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us
The returns on capital haven't changed much for Iren in recent years. The company has employed 42% more capital in the last five years, and the returns on that capital have remained stable at 5.3%. This poor ROCE doesn't inspire confidence right now, and with the increase in capital employed, it's evident that the business isn't deploying the funds into high return investments.
The Bottom Line On Iren's ROCE
As we've seen above, Iren's returns on capital haven't increased but it is reinvesting in the business. Although the market must be expecting these trends to improve because the stock has gained 62% over the last five years. Ultimately, if the underlying trends persist, we wouldn't hold our breath on it being a multi-bagger going forward.
If you'd like to know more about Iren, we've spotted 2 warning signs, and 1 of them is concerning.
While Iren 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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About BIT:IRE
6 star dividend payer and undervalued.
