Yahoo Finance Returns On Capital Are Showing Encouraging Signs At DroneShield (ASX:DRO)
If we want to find a stock that could multiply over the long term, what are the underlying trends we should look for? Ideally, a business will show two trends; firstly a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an increasing amount of capital employed. If you see this, it typically means it's a company with a great business model and plenty of profitable reinvestment opportunities. With that in mind, we've noticed some promising trends at DroneShield (ASX:DRO) so let's look a bit deeper.
Understanding 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 DroneShield, this is the formula:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.048 = AU$3.7m ÷ (AU$97m - AU$20m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2023).
So, DroneShield has an ROCE of 4.8%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Aerospace & Defense industry average of 8.3%.
View our latest analysis for DroneShield
In the above chart we have measured DroneShield's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free analyst report for DroneShield .
What Does the ROCE Trend For DroneShield Tell Us?
DroneShield has recently broken into profitability so their prior investments seem to be paying off. The company was generating losses five years ago, but now it's earning 4.8% which is a sight for sore eyes. Not only that, but the company is utilizing 3,625% 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.
One more thing to note, DroneShield has decreased current liabilities to 21% of total assets over this period, which effectively reduces the amount of funding from suppliers or short-term creditors. So this improvement in ROCE has come from the business' underlying economics, which is great to see.
The Bottom Line
Overall, DroneShield gets a big tick from us thanks in most part to the fact that it is now profitable and is reinvesting in its business. And a remarkable 493% total return over the last five years tells us that investors are expecting more good things to come in the future. Therefore, we think it would be worth your time to check if these trends are going to continue.
If you'd like to know about the risks facing DroneShield, we've discovered 3 warning signs that you should be aware of.
While DroneShield 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.
