Yahoo Finance Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Knows How To Allocate Capital
If you're looking for a multi-bagger, there's a few things to keep an eye out for. 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. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. Ergo, when we looked at the ROCE trends at Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX), we liked what we saw.
Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)
Just to clarify if you're unsure, ROCE is a metric for evaluating how much pre-tax income (in percentage terms) a company earns on the capital invested in its business. To calculate this metric for Lam Research, this is the formula:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.32 = US$4.6b ÷ (US$19b - US$4.2b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2023).
So, Lam Research has an ROCE of 32%. That's a fantastic return and not only that, it outpaces the average of 11% earned by companies in a similar industry.
Check out our latest analysis for Lam Research
In the above chart we have measured Lam Research's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Lam Research here for free.
What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us
It's hard not to be impressed by Lam Research's returns on capital. The company has employed 76% more capital in the last five years, and the returns on that capital have remained stable at 32%. With returns that high, it's great that the business can continually reinvest its money at such appealing rates of return. If these trends can continue, it wouldn't surprise us if the company became a multi-bagger.
What We Can Learn From Lam Research's ROCE
In summary, we're delighted to see that Lam Research has been compounding returns by reinvesting at consistently high rates of return, as these are common traits of a multi-bagger. On top of that, the stock has rewarded shareholders with a remarkable 394% return to those who've held over the last five years. So while investors seem to be recognizing these promising trends, we still believe the stock deserves further research.
On the other side of ROCE, we have to consider valuation. That's why we have a FREE intrinsic value estimation on our platform that is definitely worth checking out.
If you want to search for more stocks that have been earning high returns, check out this free list of stocks with solid balance sheets that are also earning high 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.
