Returns On Capital Are A Standout For Parkson Retail Asia (SGX:O9E)

Finding a business that has the potential to grow substantially is not easy, but it is possible if we look at a few key financial metrics. Firstly, we'd want to identify a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and then alongside that, an ever-increasing 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. And in light of that, the trends we're seeing at Parkson Retail Asia's (SGX:O9E) 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. The formula for this calculation on Parkson Retail Asia is:

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

0.35 = S$58m ÷ (S$342m - S$179m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2021).

Therefore, Parkson Retail Asia has an ROCE of 35%. In absolute terms that's a great return and it's even better than the Multiline Retail industry average of 5.5%.

View our latest analysis for Parkson Retail Asia

Historical performance is a great place to start when researching a stock so above you can see the gauge for Parkson Retail Asia's ROCE against it's prior returns. If you'd like to look at how Parkson Retail Asia has performed in the past in other metrics, you can view this free graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

How Are Returns Trending?

Parkson Retail Asia has broken into the black (profitability) and we're sure it's a sight for sore eyes. The company now earns 35% on its capital, because five years ago it was incurring losses. Interestingly, the capital employed by the business has remained relatively flat, so these higher returns are either from prior investments paying off or increased efficiencies. 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. So if you're looking for high growth, you'll want to see a business's capital employed also increasing.

On a separate but related note, it's important to know that Parkson Retail Asia has a current liabilities to total assets ratio of 52%, which we'd consider pretty high. This effectively means that suppliers (or short-term creditors) are funding a large portion of the business, so just be aware that this can introduce some elements of risk. Ideally we'd like to see this reduce as that would mean fewer obligations bearing risks.

Our Take On Parkson Retail Asia's ROCE

As discussed above, Parkson Retail Asia appears to be getting more proficient at generating returns since capital employed has remained flat but earnings (before interest and tax) are up. And since the stock has dived 90% over the last five years, there may be other factors affecting the company's prospects. Still, it's worth doing some further research to see if the trends will continue into the future.

On a final note, we found 4 warning signs for Parkson Retail Asia (3 are potentially serious) you should be aware of.

If you'd like to see other companies earning high returns, check out our free list of companies earning high returns with solid balance sheets 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.