Ferronordic (STO:FNM) Is Reinvesting To Multiply In Value

If you're not sure where to start when looking for the next multi-bagger, there are a few key trends you should keep an eye out for. 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. So, when we ran our eye over Ferronordic's (STO:FNM) trend of ROCE, we really liked what we saw.

Understanding 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. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Ferronordic:

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

0.28 = kr482m ÷ (kr4.0b - kr2.3b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2021).

So, Ferronordic has an ROCE of 28%. In absolute terms that's a great return and it's even better than the Trade Distributors industry average of 14%.

Check out our latest analysis for Ferronordic

In the above chart we have measured Ferronordic'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 Ferronordic.

How Are Returns Trending?

Ferronordic deserves to be commended in regards to it's returns. Over the past five years, ROCE has remained relatively flat at around 28% and the business has deployed 275% more capital into its operations. With returns that high, it's great that the business can continually reinvest its money at such appealing rates of return. If Ferronordic can keep this up, we'd be very optimistic about its future.

On a side note, Ferronordic's current liabilities are still rather high at 57% of total assets. This can bring about some risks because the company is basically operating with a rather large reliance on its suppliers or other sorts of short-term creditors. While it's not necessarily a bad thing, it can be beneficial if this ratio is lower.

The Bottom Line

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. However, despite the favorable fundamentals, the stock has fallen 65% over the last three years, so there might be an opportunity here for astute investors. That's why we think it'd be worthwhile to look further into this stock given the fundamentals are appealing.

One more thing, we've spotted 3 warning signs facing Ferronordic that you might find interesting.

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.