Returns On Capital Are Showing Encouraging Signs At Perficient (NASDAQ:PRFT)

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? 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. Basically this means that a company has profitable initiatives that it can continue to reinvest in, which is a trait of a compounding machine. With that in mind, we've noticed some promising trends at Perficient (NASDAQ:PRFT) so let's look a bit deeper.

What is Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)?

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. To calculate this metric for Perficient, this is the formula:

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

0.11 = US$75m ÷ (US$768m - US$104m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2021).

So, Perficient has an ROCE of 11%. That's a pretty standard return and it's in line with the industry average of 11%.

Check out our latest analysis for Perficient

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Above you can see how the current ROCE for Perficient compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

What Can We Tell From Perficient's ROCE Trend?

Investors would be pleased with what's happening at Perficient. The data shows that returns on capital have increased substantially over the last five years to 11%. The amount of capital employed has increased too, by 56%. The increasing returns on a growing amount of capital is common amongst multi-baggers and that's why we're impressed.

The Bottom Line On Perficient's ROCE

In summary, it's great to see that Perficient can compound returns by consistently reinvesting capital at increasing rates of return, because these are some of the key ingredients of those highly sought after multi-baggers. And with the stock having performed exceptionally well over the last five years, these patterns are being accounted for by investors. With that being said, we still think the promising fundamentals mean the company deserves some further due diligence.

On a separate note, we've found 4 warning signs for Perficient you'll probably want to know about.

While Perficient 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.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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.

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