What are the early trends we should look for to identify a stock that could multiply in value over the long term? Ideally, a business will show two trends; firstly a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an increasing amount of capital employed. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. Having said that, from a first glance at Windey Energy Technology Group (SZSE:300772) we aren't jumping out of our chairs at how returns are trending, but let's have a deeper look.

Return On Capital Employed (ROCE): What Is It?

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 Windey Energy Technology Group, this is the formula:

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

0.034 = CN¥324m ÷ (CN¥29b - CN¥19b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2023).

Therefore, Windey Energy Technology Group has an ROCE of 3.4%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Electrical industry average of 6.3%.

Check out our latest analysis for Windey Energy Technology Group

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Windey Energy Technology Group compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report for Windey Energy Technology Group.

The Trend Of ROCE

When we looked at the ROCE trend at Windey Energy Technology Group, we didn't gain much confidence. To be more specific, ROCE has fallen from 5.6% over the last five years. However it looks like Windey Energy Technology Group might be reinvesting for long term growth because while capital employed has increased, the company's sales haven't changed much in the last 12 months. It's worth keeping an eye on the company's earnings from here on to see if these investments do end up contributing to the bottom line.

On a separate but related note, it's important to know that Windey Energy Technology Group has a current liabilities to total assets ratio of 66%, 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. While it's not necessarily a bad thing, it can be beneficial if this ratio is lower.

The Bottom Line

Bringing it all together, while we're somewhat encouraged by Windey Energy Technology Group's reinvestment in its own business, we're aware that returns are shrinking. Since the stock has gained an impressive 34% over the last three years, investors must think there's better things to come. But if the trajectory of these underlying trends continue, we think the likelihood of it being a multi-bagger from here isn't high.

Since virtually every company faces some risks, it's worth knowing what they are, and we've spotted 4 warning signs for Windey Energy Technology Group (of which 1 shouldn't be ignored!) that you should know about.

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.