Onto Innovation (NYSE:ONTO) Has More To Do To Multiply In Value Going Forward

If we want to find a stock that could multiply over the long term, what are the underlying trends we should look for? 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. Put simply, these types of businesses are compounding machines, meaning they are continually reinvesting their earnings at ever-higher rates of return. With that in mind, the ROCE of Onto Innovation (NYSE:ONTO) looks decent, right now, so lets see what the trend of returns can tell us.

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 Onto Innovation:

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

0.14 = US$230m ÷ (US$1.8b - US$170m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to October 2022).

Thus, Onto Innovation has an ROCE of 14%. In absolute terms, that's a pretty normal return, and it's somewhat close to the Semiconductor industry average of 16%.

Check out our latest analysis for Onto Innovation

roce

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Onto Innovation compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Onto Innovation here for free.

What Can We Tell From Onto Innovation's ROCE Trend?

While the returns on capital are good, they haven't moved much. The company has consistently earned 14% for the last five years, and the capital employed within the business has risen 373% in that time. Since 14% is a moderate ROCE though, it's good to see a business can continue to reinvest at these decent rates of return. Stable returns in this ballpark can be unexciting, but if they can be maintained over the long run, they often provide nice rewards to shareholders.

The Key Takeaway

In the end, Onto Innovation has proven its ability to adequately reinvest capital at good rates of return. And long term investors would be thrilled with the 140% return they've received over the last three years. So while the positive underlying trends may be accounted for by investors, we still think this stock is worth looking into further.

One more thing to note, we've identified 1 warning sign with Onto Innovation and understanding it should be part of your investment process.

While Onto Innovation isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets.

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.

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