Advertisement
New Zealand markets closed
  • NZX 50

    12,105.29
    +94.63 (+0.79%)
     
  • NZD/USD

    0.5975
    -0.0031 (-0.51%)
     
  • NZD/EUR

    0.5532
    -0.0011 (-0.19%)
     
  • ALL ORDS

    8,153.70
    +80.10 (+0.99%)
     
  • ASX 200

    7,896.90
    +77.30 (+0.99%)
     
  • OIL

    83.05
    +1.70 (+2.09%)
     
  • GOLD

    2,243.80
    +31.10 (+1.41%)
     
  • NASDAQ

    18,254.69
    -26.15 (-0.14%)
     
  • FTSE

    7,952.62
    +20.64 (+0.26%)
     
  • Dow Jones

    39,807.37
    +47.29 (+0.12%)
     
  • DAX

    18,492.49
    +15.40 (+0.08%)
     
  • Hang Seng

    16,541.42
    +148.58 (+0.91%)
     
  • NIKKEI 225

    40,168.07
    -594.66 (-1.46%)
     
  • NZD/JPY

    90.3830
    -0.3970 (-0.44%)
     

Returns At WMG Holdings Bhd (KLSE:WMG) Are On The Way Up

If you're not sure where to start when looking for the next multi-bagger, there are a few key trends you should keep an eye out for. Firstly, we'll want to see a proven return on capital employed (ROCE) that is increasing, and secondly, an expanding base of capital employed. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. So when we looked at WMG Holdings Bhd (KLSE:WMG) and its trend of ROCE, we really liked what we saw.

Understanding 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. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for WMG Holdings Bhd:

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

0.015 = RM3.7m ÷ (RM432m - RM185m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2022).

ADVERTISEMENT

So, WMG Holdings Bhd has an ROCE of 1.5%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Trade Distributors industry average of 7.9%.

See our latest analysis for WMG Holdings Bhd

roce
roce

Historical performance is a great place to start when researching a stock so above you can see the gauge for WMG Holdings Bhd's ROCE against it's prior returns. If you'd like to look at how WMG Holdings Bhd has performed in the past in other metrics, you can view this free graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What Can We Tell From WMG Holdings Bhd's ROCE Trend?

We're delighted to see that WMG Holdings Bhd is reaping rewards from its investments and is now generating some pre-tax profits. Shareholders would no doubt be pleased with this because the business was loss-making five years ago but is is now generating 1.5% on its capital. Not only that, but the company is utilizing 24% more capital than before, but that's to be expected from a company trying to break into profitability. This can tell us that the company has plenty of reinvestment opportunities that are able to generate higher returns.

Another thing to note, WMG Holdings Bhd has a high ratio of current liabilities to total assets of 43%. 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.

In Conclusion...

Overall, WMG Holdings Bhd gets a big tick from us thanks in most part to the fact that it is now profitable and is reinvesting in its business. Given the stock has declined 57% in the last five years, this could be a good investment if the valuation and other metrics are also appealing. With that in mind, we believe the promising trends warrant this stock for further investigation.

WMG Holdings Bhd does come with some risks though, we found 2 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 1 of those is potentially serious...

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.

Join A Paid User Research Session
You’ll receive a US$30 Amazon Gift card for 1 hour of your time while helping us build better investing tools for the individual investors like yourself. Sign up here