What are the early trends we should look for to identify a stock that could 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. This shows us that it's a compounding machine, able to continually reinvest its earnings back into the business and generate higher returns. In light of that, when we looked at Haibo Heavy Engineering Science and Technology (SZSE:300517) and its ROCE trend, we weren't exactly thrilled.

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 Haibo Heavy Engineering Science and Technology is:

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

0.057 = CN¥68m ÷ (CN¥1.7b - CN¥523m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2022).

Therefore, Haibo Heavy Engineering Science and Technology has an ROCE of 5.7%. In absolute terms, that's a low return but it's around the Construction industry average of 7.0%.

View our latest analysis for Haibo Heavy Engineering Science and Technology

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'd like to look at how Haibo Heavy Engineering Science and Technology has performed in the past in other metrics, you can view this free graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us

In terms of Haibo Heavy Engineering Science and Technology's historical ROCE trend, it doesn't exactly demand attention. The company has employed 97% more capital in the last five years, and the returns on that capital have remained stable at 5.7%. Given the company has increased the amount of capital employed, it appears the investments that have been made simply don't provide a high return on capital.

The Bottom Line

In conclusion, Haibo Heavy Engineering Science and Technology has been investing more capital into the business, but returns on that capital haven't increased. And investors may be recognizing these trends since the stock has only returned a total of 17% to shareholders over the last five years. Therefore, if you're looking for a multi-bagger, we'd propose looking at other options.

Haibo Heavy Engineering Science and Technology could be trading at an attractive price in other respects, so you might find our free intrinsic value estimation on our platform quite valuable.

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.