If you're looking for a multi-bagger, there's a few things to keep an eye out for. Typically, we'll want to notice a trend of growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and alongside that, an expanding base 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. However, after briefly looking over the numbers, we don't think B&G Foods (NYSE:BGS) 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?

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 B&G Foods is:

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

0.075 = US$234m ÷ (US$3.4b - US$244m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2024).

Therefore, B&G Foods has an ROCE of 7.5%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Food industry average of 11%.

Above you can see how the current ROCE for B&G Foods 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 analyst report for B&G Foods .

So How Is B&G Foods' ROCE Trending?

Over the past five years, B&G Foods' ROCE and capital employed have both remained mostly flat. This tells us the company isn't reinvesting in itself, so it's plausible that it's past the growth phase. So unless we see a substantial change at B&G Foods in terms of ROCE and additional investments being made, we wouldn't hold our breath on it being a multi-bagger. That probably explains why B&G Foods has been paying out 80% of its earnings as dividends to shareholders. These mature businesses typically have reliable earnings and not many places to reinvest them, so the next best option is to put the earnings into shareholders pockets.

In Conclusion...

We can conclude that in regards to B&G Foods' returns on capital employed and the trends, there isn't much change to report on. And investors appear hesitant that the trends will pick up because the stock has fallen 46% in the last five years. All in all, the inherent trends aren't typical of multi-baggers, so if that's what you're after, we think you might have more luck elsewhere.

One more thing: We've identified 4 warning signs with B&G Foods (at least 1 which is a bit concerning) , and understanding these would certainly be useful.

While B&G Foods 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.