If you’re looking for a multi-bagger, there’s a few things to keep an eye out for. One common approach is to try and find a company with returns on capital employed (ROCE) that are increasing, in conjunction with a growing amount of capital employed. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it’s a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. Ergo, when we looked at the ROCE trends at Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST), we liked what we saw.
Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)
For those who don’t know, ROCE is a measure of a company’s yearly pre-tax profit (its return), relative to the capital employed in the business. To calculate this metric for Fastenal, this is the formula:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets – Current Liabilities)
0.39 = US$1.5b ÷ (US$4.5b – US$638m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2024).
So, Fastenal has an ROCE of 39%. That’s a fantastic return and not only that, it outpaces the average of 13% earned by companies in a similar industry.
See our latest analysis for Fastenal
Above you can see how the current ROCE for Fastenal 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 Fastenal for free.
What Can We Tell From Fastenal’s ROCE Trend?
Fastenal deserves to be commended in regards to it’s returns. The company has employed 26% more capital in the last five years, and the returns on that capital have remained stable at 39%. Returns like this are the envy of most businesses and given it has repeatedly reinvested at these rates, that’s even better. If Fastenal can keep this up, we’d be very optimistic about its future.
What We Can Learn From Fastenal’s ROCE
In summary, we’re delighted to see that Fastenal has been compounding returns by reinvesting at consistently high rates of return, as these are common traits of a multi-bagger. On top of that, the stock has rewarded shareholders with a remarkable 139% return to those who’ve held over the last five years. So while investors seem to be recognizing these promising trends, we still believe the stock deserves further research.
Before jumping to any conclusions though, we need to know what value we’re getting for the current share price. That’s where you can check out our FREE intrinsic value estimation for FAST that compares the share price and estimated value.
Fastenal is not the only stock earning high returns. If you’d like to see more, check out our free list of companies earning high returns on equity with solid fundamentals.
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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.