Did you know there are some financial metrics that can provide clues of a potential multi-bagger? In a perfect world, we'd like to see a company investing more capital into its business and ideally the returns earned from that capital are also increasing. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. Speaking of which, we noticed some great changes in Renishaw's (LON:RSW) returns on capital, so let's have a look.

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Return On Capital Employed (ROCE): What Is It?

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. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Renishaw:

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

0.12 = UK£115m ÷ (UK£1.0b - UK£103m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2024).

So, Renishaw has an ROCE of 12%.  In absolute terms, that's a satisfactory return, but compared to the Electronic industry average of 9.8% it's much better.

See our latest analysis for Renishaw LSE:RSW Return on Capital Employed March 21st 2025

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Renishaw 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 analyst report for Renishaw .

The Trend Of ROCE

Renishaw is displaying some positive trends. Over the last five years, returns on capital employed have risen substantially to 12%. 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 41%. This can indicate that there's plenty of opportunities to invest capital internally and at ever higher rates, a combination that's common among multi-baggers.

The Bottom Line

All in all, it's terrific to see that Renishaw is reaping the rewards from prior investments and is growing its capital base. Since the total return from the stock has been almost flat over the last five years, there might be an opportunity here if the valuation looks good. So researching this company further and determining whether or not these trends will continue seems justified.

Like most companies, Renishaw does come with some risks, and we've found 1 warning sign that you should be aware of.

Story Continues

While Renishaw isn't earning the highest return, check out this freelist 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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