If we're looking to avoid a business that is in decline, what are the trends that can warn us ahead of time? More often than not, we'll see a declining return on capital employed (ROCE) and a declining amount of capital employed. This indicates the company is producing less profit from its investments and its total assets are decreasing. Having said that, after a brief look, IFCA MSC Berhad (KLSE:IFCAMSC) we aren't filled with optimism, but let's investigate further.

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. The formula for this calculation on IFCA MSC Berhad is:

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

0.019 = RM2.4m ÷ (RM154m - RM30m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2023).

Thus, IFCA MSC Berhad has an ROCE of 1.9%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Software industry average of 9.3%.

See our latest analysis for IFCA MSC Berhad

Historical performance is a great place to start when researching a stock so above you can see the gauge for IFCA MSC Berhad's ROCE against it's prior returns. If you're interested in investigating IFCA MSC Berhad's past further, check out this free graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us

There is reason to be cautious about IFCA MSC Berhad, given the returns are trending downwards. Unfortunately the returns on capital have diminished from the 3.5% that they were earning five years ago. On top of that, it's worth noting that the amount of capital employed within the business has remained relatively steady. Since returns are falling and the business has the same amount of assets employed, this can suggest it's a mature business that hasn't had much growth in the last five years. So because these trends aren't typically conducive to creating a multi-bagger, we wouldn't hold our breath on IFCA MSC Berhad becoming one if things continue as they have.

The Bottom Line

In the end, the trend of lower returns on the same amount of capital isn't typically an indication that we're looking at a growth stock. But investors must be expecting an improvement of sorts because over the last five yearsthe stock has delivered a respectable 56% return. In any case, the current underlying trends don't bode well for long term performance so unless they reverse, we'd start looking elsewhere.

On a final note, we found 2 warning signs for IFCA MSC Berhad (1 doesn't sit too well with us) you should be aware of.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.