In This Article:
Finding a business that has the potential to grow substantially is not easy, but it is possible if we look at a few key financial metrics. Firstly, we'll want to see a proven return on capital employed (ROCE) that is increasing, and secondly, 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. Speaking of which, we noticed some great changes in Toll Brothers' (NYSE:TOL) returns on capital, so let's have a look.
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 Toll Brothers, this is the formula:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.13 = US$1.2b ÷ (US$12b - US$2.0b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to April 2022).
Thus, Toll Brothers has an ROCE of 13%. In isolation, that's a pretty standard return but against the Consumer Durables industry average of 17%, it's not as good.
See our latest analysis for Toll Brothers
Above you can see how the current ROCE for Toll Brothers 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 Toll Brothers here for free.
What Does the ROCE Trend For Toll Brothers Tell Us?
Toll Brothers has not disappointed with their ROCE growth. More specifically, while the company has kept capital employed relatively flat over the last five years, the ROCE has climbed 123% in that same time. Basically the business is generating higher returns from the same amount of capital and that is proof that there are improvements in the company's efficiencies. It's worth looking deeper into this though because while it's great that the business is more efficient, it might also mean that going forward the areas to invest internally for the organic growth are lacking.
Our Take On Toll Brothers' ROCE
To bring it all together, Toll Brothers has done well to increase the returns it's generating from its capital employed. Since the stock has only returned 28% to shareholders over the last five years, the promising fundamentals may not be recognized yet by investors. So exploring more about this stock could uncover a good opportunity, if the valuation and other metrics stack up.
On a final note, we found 3 warning signs for Toll Brothers (1 can't be ignored) you should be aware of.