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. Put simply, these types of businesses are compounding machines, meaning they are continually reinvesting their earnings at ever-higher rates of return. Speaking of which, we noticed some great changes in Saia's (NASDAQ:SAIA) returns on capital, so let's have a look.

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 Saia, this is the formula:

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

0.19 = US$498m ÷ (US$3.0b - US$328m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2024).

Therefore, Saia has an ROCE of 19%. In absolute terms, that's a satisfactory return, but compared to the Transportation industry average of 7.0% it's much better.

In the above chart we have measured Saia'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 analyst report for Saia .

What Does the ROCE Trend For Saia Tell Us?

We like the trends that we're seeing from Saia. Over the last five years, returns on capital employed have risen substantially to 19%. The company is effectively making more money per dollar of capital used, and it's worth noting that the amount of capital has increased too, by 136%. So we're very much inspired by what we're seeing at Saia thanks to its ability to profitably reinvest capital.

In Conclusion...

A company that is growing its returns on capital and can consistently reinvest in itself is a highly sought after trait, and that's what Saia has. And with the stock having performed exceptionally well over the last five years, these patterns are being accounted for by investors. With that being said, we still think the promising fundamentals mean the company deserves some further due diligence.

One more thing to note, we've identified 1 warning sign with Saia and understanding this should be part of your investment process.

While Saia may not currently earn the highest returns, we've compiled a list of companies that currently earn more than 25% return on equity. Check out this free list 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.