Shareholders Are Optimistic That New Work (ETR:NWO) Will Multiply In Value

What are the early trends we should look for to identify a stock that could multiply in value over the long term? Typically, we'll want to notice a trend of growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and alongside that, an expanding base of capital employed. This shows us that it's a compounding machine, able to continually reinvest its earnings back into the business and generate higher returns. That's why when we briefly looked at New Work's (ETR:NWO) ROCE trend, we were very happy with what we saw.

What Is 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. To calculate this metric for New Work, this is the formula:

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

0.32 = €68m ÷ (€380m - €170m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2022).

Therefore, New Work has an ROCE of 32%. While that is an outstanding return, the rest of the Interactive Media and Services industry generates similar returns, on average.

View our latest analysis for New Work

Above you can see how the current ROCE for New Work compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

What The Trend Of ROCE Can Tell Us

In terms of New Work's history of ROCE, it's quite impressive. The company has employed 77% more capital in the last five years, and the returns on that capital have remained stable at 32%. Now considering ROCE is an attractive 32%, this combination is actually pretty appealing because it means the business can consistently put money to work and generate these high returns. You'll see this when looking at well operated businesses or favorable business models.

On a side note, New Work's current liabilities are still rather high at 45% of total assets. This effectively means that suppliers (or short-term creditors) are funding a large portion of the business, so just be aware that this can introduce some elements of risk. Ideally we'd like to see this reduce as that would mean fewer obligations bearing risks.

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. Yet over the last five years the stock has declined 37%, so the decline might provide an opening. For that reason, savvy investors might want to look further into this company in case it's a prime investment.

New Work does come with some risks though, we found 2 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 1 of those is potentially serious...

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.

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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