Returns On Capital At Breville Group (ASX:BRG) Paint A Concerning Picture

Simply Wall St
·2 min read

If we want to find a stock that could multiply over the long term, what are the underlying trends we should look for? Firstly, we'd want to identify a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and then alongside that, an ever-increasing base of capital employed. Put simply, these types of businesses are compounding machines, meaning they are continually reinvesting their earnings at ever-higher rates of return. Having said that, while the ROCE is currently high for Breville Group (ASX:BRG), we aren't jumping out of our chairs because returns are decreasing.

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 Breville Group is:

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

0.21 = AU$160m ÷ (AU$1.2b - AU$398m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2021).

Therefore, Breville Group has an ROCE of 21%. In absolute terms that's a great return and it's even better than the Consumer Durables industry average of 14%.

View our latest analysis for Breville Group

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Above you can see how the current ROCE for Breville Group 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 report for Breville Group.

What Can We Tell From Breville Group's ROCE Trend?

In terms of Breville Group's historical ROCE movements, the trend isn't fantastic. To be more specific, while the ROCE is still high, it's fallen from 28% where it was five years ago. Although, given both revenue and the amount of assets employed in the business have increased, it could suggest the company is investing in growth, and the extra capital has led to a short-term reduction in ROCE. If these investments prove successful, this can bode very well for long term stock performance.

What We Can Learn From Breville Group's ROCE

Even though returns on capital have fallen in the short term, we find it promising that revenue and capital employed have both increased for Breville Group. Furthermore the stock has climbed 93% over the last five years, it would appear that investors are upbeat about the future. So while the underlying trends could already be accounted for by investors, we still think this stock is worth looking into further.

Breville Group does have some risks, we noticed 2 warning signs (and 1 which is a bit unpleasant) we think you should know about.

If you'd like to see other companies earning high returns, check out our free list of companies earning high returns with solid balance sheets 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.