Returns On Capital Are A Standout For Altria Group (NYSE:MO)

If we want to find a potential multi-bagger, often there are underlying trends that can provide clues. Amongst other things, we'll want to see two things; firstly, a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an expansion in the company's amount of capital employed. 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 Altria Group's (NYSE:MO) returns on capital, so let's have a look.

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. The formula for this calculation on Altria Group is:

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

0.43 = US$12b ÷ (US$37b - US$8.3b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2022).

Thus, Altria Group has an ROCE of 43%. In absolute terms that's a great return and it's even better than the Tobacco industry average of 22%.

See our latest analysis for Altria Group

In the above chart we have measured Altria Group's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

How Are Returns Trending?

Altria Group has not disappointed in regards to ROCE growth. The figures show that over the last five years, returns on capital have grown by 69%. That's a very favorable trend because this means that the company is earning more per dollar of capital that's being employed. Speaking of capital employed, the company is actually utilizing 25% less than it was five years ago, which can be indicative of a business that's improving its efficiency. Altria Group may be selling some assets so it's worth investigating if the business has plans for future investments to increase returns further still.

Our Take On Altria Group's ROCE

In the end, Altria Group has proven it's capital allocation skills are good with those higher returns from less amount of capital. 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.

Altria Group does have some risks though, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Altria Group that you might be interested in.

If you want to search for more stocks that have been earning high returns, check out this free list of stocks with solid balance sheets that are also earning high returns on equity.

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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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