What trends should we look for it we want to identify stocks that can multiply in value over the long term? One common approach is to try and find a company with returns on capital employed (ROCE) that are increasing, in conjunction with a growing amount of capital employed. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. However, after briefly looking over the numbers, we don't think China Youran Dairy Group (HKG:9858) has the makings of a multi-bagger going forward, but let's have a look at why that may be.

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

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 China Youran Dairy Group:

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

0.12 = CN¥2.8b ÷ (CN¥46b - CN¥23b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2023).

Therefore, China Youran Dairy Group has an ROCE of 12%. On its own, that's a standard return, however it's much better than the 9.3% generated by the Food industry.

See our latest analysis for China Youran Dairy Group

Above you can see how the current ROCE for China Youran Dairy Group compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us

On the surface, the trend of ROCE at China Youran Dairy Group doesn't inspire confidence. Around four years ago the returns on capital were 16%, but since then they've fallen to 12%. On the other hand, the company has been employing more capital without a corresponding improvement in sales in the last year, which could suggest these investments are longer term plays. 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 side note, China Youran Dairy Group's current liabilities have increased over the last four years to 50% of total assets, effectively distorting the ROCE to some degree. Without this increase, it's likely that ROCE would be even lower than 12%. What this means is that in reality, a rather large portion of the business is being funded by the likes of the company's suppliers or short-term creditors, which can bring some risks of its own.

The Bottom Line On China Youran Dairy Group's ROCE

Bringing it all together, while we're somewhat encouraged by China Youran Dairy Group's reinvestment in its own business, we're aware that returns are shrinking. And in the last year, the stock has given away 38% so the market doesn't look too hopeful on these trends strengthening any time soon. On the whole, we aren't too inspired by the underlying trends and we think there may be better chances of finding a multi-bagger elsewhere.

China Youran Dairy Group does have some risks though, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for China Youran Dairy Group that you might be interested in.

While China Youran Dairy Group may not currently earn the highest returns, we've compiled a list of companies that currently earn more than 25% return on equity. Check out this free list here.

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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.