CLPS Incorporation (NASDAQ:CLPS) Is Reinvesting At Lower Rates Of Return

Did you know there are some financial metrics that can provide clues of a potential multi-bagger? 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. Having said that, from a first glance at CLPS Incorporation (NASDAQ:CLPS) we aren't jumping out of our chairs at how returns are trending, but let's have a deeper look.

Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)

Just to clarify if you're unsure, ROCE is a metric for evaluating how much pre-tax income (in percentage terms) a company earns on the capital invested in its business. To calculate this metric for CLPS Incorporation, this is the formula:

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

0.16 = US$11m ÷ (US$102m - US$33m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2021).

So, CLPS Incorporation has an ROCE of 16%. On its own, that's a standard return, however it's much better than the 12% generated by the IT industry.

See our latest analysis for CLPS Incorporation

While the past is not representative of the future, it can be helpful to know how a company has performed historically, which is why we have this chart above. If you want to delve into the historical earnings, revenue and cash flow of CLPS Incorporation, check out these free graphs here.

How Are Returns Trending?

On the surface, the trend of ROCE at CLPS Incorporation doesn't inspire confidence. Over the last five years, returns on capital have decreased to 16% from 23% five years ago. Although, given both revenue and the amount of assets employed in the business have increased, it could suggest the company is investing in growth, and the extra capital has led to a short-term reduction in ROCE. And if the increased capital generates additional returns, the business, and thus shareholders, will benefit in the long run.

On a side note, CLPS Incorporation has done well to pay down its current liabilities to 32% of total assets. So we could link some of this to the decrease in ROCE. What's more, this can reduce some aspects of risk to the business because now the company's suppliers or short-term creditors are funding less of its operations. Since the business is basically funding more of its operations with it's own money, you could argue this has made the business less efficient at generating ROCE.

Our Take On CLPS Incorporation's ROCE

In summary, despite lower returns in the short term, we're encouraged to see that CLPS Incorporation is reinvesting for growth and has higher sales as a result. These growth trends haven't led to growth returns though, since the stock has fallen 69% over the last three years. As a result, we'd recommend researching this stock further to uncover what other fundamentals of the business can show us.

Like most companies, CLPS Incorporation does come with some risks, and we've found 3 warning signs that you should be aware of.

For those who like to invest in solid companies, check out this free list of companies with solid balance sheets and 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.