Yahoo Finance Shareholders Are Optimistic That Greggs (LON:GRG) Will Multiply In Value
If we want to find a stock that could multiply over the long term, what are the underlying trends we should look for? Typically, we'll want to notice a trend of growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and alongside that, an expanding base 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. That's why when we briefly looked at Greggs' (LON:GRG) ROCE trend, we were very happy with 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. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Greggs:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.23 = UK£153m ÷ (UK£859m - UK£209m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to July 2022).
Therefore, Greggs has an ROCE of 23%. In absolute terms that's a great return and it's even better than the Hospitality industry average of 6.3%.
Check out our latest analysis for Greggs
In the above chart we have measured Greggs' 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 report for Greggs.
What Can We Tell From Greggs' ROCE Trend?
It's hard not to be impressed by Greggs' returns on capital. Over the past five years, ROCE has remained relatively flat at around 23% and the business has deployed 121% more capital into its operations. Now considering ROCE is an attractive 23%, this combination is actually pretty appealing because it means the business can consistently put money to work and generate these high returns. If Greggs can keep this up, we'd be very optimistic about its future.
The Key Takeaway
In the end, the company has proven it can reinvest it's capital at high rates of returns, which you'll remember is a trait of a multi-bagger. And the stock has done incredibly well with a 151% return over the last five years, so long term investors are no doubt ecstatic with that result. So while investors seem to be recognizing these promising trends, we still believe the stock deserves further research.
Like most companies, Greggs does come with some risks, and we've found 1 warning sign that you should be aware of.
High returns are a key ingredient to strong performance, so check out our free list ofstocks 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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