There are a few key trends to look for if we want to identify the next multi-bagger. 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. Although, when we looked at CETC Cyberspace Security Technology (SZSE:002268), it didn't seem to tick all of these boxes.

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

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 CETC Cyberspace Security Technology is:

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

0.018 = CN¥100m ÷ (CN¥7.1b - CN¥1.6b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2024).

Thus, CETC Cyberspace Security Technology has an ROCE of 1.8%. Ultimately, that's a low return and it under-performs the Software industry average of 3.6%.

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're interested in investigating CETC Cyberspace Security Technology's past further, check out this free graph covering CETC Cyberspace Security Technology's past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

So How Is CETC Cyberspace Security Technology's ROCE Trending?

The returns on capital haven't changed much for CETC Cyberspace Security Technology in recent years. The company has employed 22% more capital in the last five years, and the returns on that capital have remained stable at 1.8%. This poor ROCE doesn't inspire confidence right now, and with the increase in capital employed, it's evident that the business isn't deploying the funds into high return investments.

What We Can Learn From CETC Cyberspace Security Technology's ROCE

Long story short, while CETC Cyberspace Security Technology has been reinvesting its capital, the returns that it's generating haven't increased. And investors appear hesitant that the trends will pick up because the stock has fallen 28% in the last five years. 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.

While CETC Cyberspace Security Technology doesn't shine too bright in this respect, it's still worth seeing if the company is trading at attractive prices. You can find that out with our FREE intrinsic value estimation for 002268 on our platform.

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.