BH Global (SGX:BQN) Is Looking To Continue Growing Its Returns On Capital

What are the early trends we should look for to identify a stock that could multiply in value over the long term? Firstly, we'll want to see a proven return on capital employed (ROCE) that is increasing, and secondly, an expanding base of capital employed. 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, we've noticed some promising trends at BH Global (SGX:BQN) so let's look a bit deeper.

Return On Capital Employed (ROCE): What Is It?

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 BH Global:

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

0.05 = S$3.3m ÷ (S$84m - S$18m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2022).

So, BH Global has an ROCE of 5.0%. Ultimately, that's a low return and it under-performs the Electrical industry average of 8.3%.

Check out our latest analysis for BH Global

Historical performance is a great place to start when researching a stock so above you can see the gauge for BH Global's ROCE against it's prior returns. If you want to delve into the historical earnings, revenue and cash flow of BH Global, check out these free graphs here.

How Are Returns Trending?

BH Global has broken into the black (profitability) and we're sure it's a sight for sore eyes. While the business was unprofitable in the past, it's now turned things around and is earning 5.0% on its capital. On top of that, what's interesting is that the amount of capital being employed has remained steady, so the business hasn't needed to put any additional money to work to generate these higher returns. That being said, while an increase in efficiency is no doubt appealing, it'd be helpful to know if the company does have any investment plans going forward. After all, a company can only become a long term multi-bagger if it continually reinvests in itself at high rates of return.

In another part of our analysis, we noticed that the company's ratio of current liabilities to total assets decreased to 21%, which broadly means the business is relying less on its suppliers or short-term creditors to fund its operations. So shareholders would be pleased that the growth in returns has mostly come from underlying business performance.

The Bottom Line

To sum it up, BH Global is collecting higher returns from the same amount of capital, and that's impressive. Astute investors may have an opportunity here because the stock has declined 43% in the last five years. So researching this company further and determining whether or not these trends will continue seems justified.

Since virtually every company faces some risks, it's worth knowing what they are, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for BH Global (of which 1 shouldn't be ignored!) that you should know about.

While BH Global may not currently earn the highest returns, we've compiled a list of companies that currently earn more than 25% return on equity. Check out this free list here.

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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.