Returns on Capital Paint A Bright Future For Ryerson Holding (NYSE:RYI)

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. Ideally, a business will show two trends; firstly a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an increasing amount 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. Speaking of which, we noticed some great changes in Ryerson Holding's (NYSE:RYI) returns on capital, so let's have a look.

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. The formula for this calculation on Ryerson Holding is:

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

0.47 = US$849m ÷ (US$2.7b - US$882m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2022).

Therefore, Ryerson Holding has an ROCE of 47%. In absolute terms that's a great return and it's even better than the Metals and Mining industry average of 19%.

Check out our latest analysis for Ryerson Holding

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Ryerson Holding compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Ryerson Holding here for free.

So How Is Ryerson Holding's ROCE Trending?

The trends we've noticed at Ryerson Holding are quite reassuring. The numbers show that in the last five years, the returns generated on capital employed have grown considerably to 47%. The amount of capital employed has increased too, by 35%. The increasing returns on a growing amount of capital is common amongst multi-baggers and that's why we're impressed.

The Bottom Line

In summary, it's great to see that Ryerson Holding 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. And a remarkable 228% total return over the last five years tells us that investors are expecting more good things to come in the future. With that being said, we still think the promising fundamentals mean the company deserves some further due diligence.

Ryerson Holding does have some risks, we noticed 5 warning signs (and 2 which are a bit unpleasant) we think you should know about.

If you want to search for more stocks that have been earning high returns, check out this free list of stocks with solid balance sheets that are also earning high 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.