Why We Like The Returns At Hibiscus Petroleum Berhad (KLSE:HIBISCS)

What trends should we look for it we want to identify stocks that can multiply in value over the long term? Ideally, a business will show two trends; firstly a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an increasing 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. And in light of that, the trends we're seeing at Hibiscus Petroleum Berhad's (KLSE:HIBISCS) look very promising so lets take a 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. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Hibiscus Petroleum Berhad:

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

0.26 = RM1.1b ÷ (RM5.6b - RM1.4b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2022).

Thus, Hibiscus Petroleum Berhad has an ROCE of 26%. That's a fantastic return and not only that, it outpaces the average of 13% earned by companies in a similar industry.

View our latest analysis for Hibiscus Petroleum Berhad

In the above chart we have measured Hibiscus Petroleum Berhad'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 Hibiscus Petroleum Berhad.

What Can We Tell From Hibiscus Petroleum Berhad's ROCE Trend?

Investors would be pleased with what's happening at Hibiscus Petroleum Berhad. The data shows that returns on capital have increased substantially over the last five years to 26%. Basically the business is earning more per dollar of capital invested and in addition to that, 241% more capital is being employed now too. So we're very much inspired by what we're seeing at Hibiscus Petroleum Berhad thanks to its ability to profitably reinvest capital.

On a side note, we noticed that the improvement in ROCE appears to be partly fueled by an increase in current liabilities. Essentially the business now has suppliers or short-term creditors funding about 26% of its operations, which isn't ideal. Keep an eye out for future increases because when the ratio of current liabilities to total assets gets particularly high, this can introduce some new risks for the business.

The Key Takeaway

In summary, it's great to see that Hibiscus Petroleum Berhad can compound returns by consistently reinvesting capital at increasing rates of return, because these are some of the key ingredients of those highly sought after multi-baggers. Investors may not be impressed by the favorable underlying trends yet because over the last five years the stock has only returned 19% to shareholders. So with that in mind, we think the stock deserves further research.

Hibiscus Petroleum Berhad does have some risks, we noticed 2 warning signs (and 1 which can't be ignored) we think you should know about.

High returns are a key ingredient to strong performance, so check out our free list ofstocks 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.