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. 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. Basically this means that a company has profitable initiatives that it can continue to reinvest in, which is a trait of a compounding machine. So, when we ran our eye over Cambuci's (BVMF:CAMB3) trend of ROCE, we really liked what we saw.
If you haven't worked with ROCE before, it measures the 'return' (pre-tax profit) a company generates from capital employed in its business. To calculate this metric for Cambuci, this is the formula:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)
0.27 = R$86m ÷ (R$380m - R$61m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2025).
Thus, Cambuci has an ROCE of 27%. That's a fantastic return and not only that, it outpaces the average of 12% earned by companies in a similar industry.
View our latest analysis for Cambuci
While the past is not representative of the future, it can be helpful to know how a company has performed historically, which is why we have this chart above. If you're interested in investigating Cambuci's past further, check out this free graph covering Cambuci's past earnings, revenue and cash flow.
We'd be pretty happy with returns on capital like Cambuci. The company has employed 113% more capital in the last five years, and the returns on that capital have remained stable at 27%. With returns that high, it's great that the business can continually reinvest its money at such appealing rates of return. If Cambuci can keep this up, we'd be very optimistic about its future.
On a side note, Cambuci has done well to reduce current liabilities to 16% of total assets over the last five years. Effectively suppliers now fund less of the business, which can lower some elements of risk.
Cambuci has demonstrated its proficiency by generating high returns on increasing amounts of capital employed, which we're thrilled about. On top of that, the stock has rewarded shareholders with a remarkable 173% 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.
On a final note, we've found 1 warning sign for Cambuci that we think you should be aware of.
If you'd like to see other companies earning high returns, check out our free list of companies earning high returns with solid balance sheets here.
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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.