The Trend Of High Returns At Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW) Has Us Very Interested

If we want to find a potential multi-bagger, often there are underlying trends that can provide clues. Amongst other things, we'll want to see two things; firstly, a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an expansion in the company's 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. And in light of that, the trends we're seeing at Lowe's Companies' (NYSE:LOW) look very promising so lets take a look.

Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)

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 Lowe's Companies:

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

0.41 = US$10b ÷ (US$45b - US$19b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to November 2024).

Thus, Lowe's Companies has an ROCE of 41%. In absolute terms that's a great return and it's even better than the Specialty Retail industry average of 13%.

See our latest analysis for Lowe's Companies

In the above chart we have measured Lowe's Companies' prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Lowe's Companies for free.

So How Is Lowe's Companies' ROCE Trending?

Lowe's Companies has not disappointed with their ROCE growth. Looking at the data, we can see that even though capital employed in the business has remained relatively flat, the ROCE generated has risen by 57% over the last five years. Basically the business is generating higher returns from the same amount of capital and that is proof that there are improvements in the company's efficiencies. On that front, things are looking good so it's worth exploring what management has said about growth plans going forward.

Another thing to note, Lowe's Companies has a high ratio of current liabilities to total assets of 43%. 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. While it's not necessarily a bad thing, it can be beneficial if this ratio is lower.

Our Take On Lowe's Companies' ROCE

To sum it up, Lowe's Companies is collecting higher returns from the same amount of capital, and that's impressive. And a remarkable 131% total return over the last five years tells us that investors are expecting more good things to come in the future. Therefore, we think it would be worth your time to check if these trends are going to continue.

Since virtually every company faces some risks, it's worth knowing what they are, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Lowe's Companies (of which 1 doesn't sit too well with us!) that 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.