What trends should we look for it we want to identify stocks that can multiply in value over the long term? Typically, we'll want to notice a trend of growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and alongside that, an expanding base of capital employed. Basically this means that a company has profitable initiatives that it can continue to reinvest in, which is a trait of a compounding machine. Although, when we looked at General Mills (NYSE:GIS), it didn't seem to tick all of these boxes.
What Is 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. The formula for this calculation on General Mills is:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.14 = US$3.4b ÷ (US$31b - US$7.1b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to August 2023).
Thus, General Mills has an ROCE of 14%. In absolute terms, that's a satisfactory return, but compared to the Food industry average of 11% it's much better.
See our latest analysis for General Mills
In the above chart we have measured General Mills' prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free report on analyst forecasts for the company.
What Can We Tell From General Mills' ROCE Trend?
Things have been pretty stable at General Mills, with its capital employed and returns on that capital staying somewhat the same for the last five years. Businesses with these traits tend to be mature and steady operations because they're past the growth phase. With that in mind, unless investment picks up again in the future, we wouldn't expect General Mills to be a multi-bagger going forward. With fewer investment opportunities, it makes sense that General Mills has been paying out a decent 52% of its earnings to shareholders. Given the business isn't reinvesting in itself, it makes sense to distribute a portion of earnings among shareholders.
The Bottom Line
We can conclude that in regards to General Mills' returns on capital employed and the trends, there isn't much change to report on. Although the market must be expecting these trends to improve because the stock has gained 89% over the last five years. However, unless these underlying trends turn more positive, we wouldn't get our hopes up too high.
If you want to continue researching General Mills, you might be interested to know about the 1 warning sign that our analysis has discovered.
If you want to search for solid companies with great earnings, check out this free list of companies with good balance sheets and impressive returns on equity.
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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.
About NYSE:GIS
Undervalued established dividend payer.
