Yahoo Finance DRA Global (ASX:DRA) Is Looking To Continue Growing Its Returns On Capital
What are the early trends we should look for to identify a stock that could multiply in value over the long term? Amongst other things, we'll want to see two things; firstly, a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an expansion in the company's 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. Speaking of which, we noticed some great changes in DRA Global's (ASX:DRA) returns on capital, so let's have a look.
What Is Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)?
If you haven't worked with ROCE before, it measures the 'return' (pre-tax profit) a company generates from capital employed in its business. To calculate this metric for DRA Global, this is the formula:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.014 = AU$4.6m ÷ (AU$570m - AU$241m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2022).
Therefore, DRA Global has an ROCE of 1.4%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Construction industry average of 14%.
View our latest analysis for DRA Global
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 want to delve into the historical earnings, revenue and cash flow of DRA Global, check out these free graphs here.
What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us
We're glad to see that ROCE is heading in the right direction, even if it is still low at the moment. The data shows that returns on capital have increased substantially over the last four years to 1.4%. The company is effectively making more money per dollar of capital used, and it's worth noting that the amount of capital has increased too, by 28%. The increasing returns on a growing amount of capital is common amongst multi-baggers and that's why we're impressed.
On a side note, DRA Global's current liabilities are still rather high at 42% of total assets. This effectively means that suppliers (or short-term creditors) are funding a large portion of the business, so just be aware that this can introduce some elements of risk. While it's not necessarily a bad thing, it can be beneficial if this ratio is lower.
What We Can Learn From DRA Global's ROCE
A company that is growing its returns on capital and can consistently reinvest in itself is a highly sought after trait, and that's what DRA Global has. Given the stock has declined 51% in the last year, this could be a good investment if the valuation and other metrics are also appealing. So researching this company further and determining whether or not these trends will continue seems justified.
On a final note, we found 5 warning signs for DRA Global (2 shouldn't be ignored) you should be aware of.
While DRA Global isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets.
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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.
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