Did you know there are some financial metrics that can provide clues of a potential multi-bagger? Ideally, a business will show two trends; firstly a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an increasing 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. So when we looked at Genpact (NYSE:G) and its trend of ROCE, we really liked what we saw.

What Is 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 Genpact, this is the formula:

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

0.16 = US$656m ÷ (US$5.2b - US$1.2b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2024).

So, Genpact has an ROCE of 16%. In absolute terms, that's a pretty normal return, and it's somewhat close to the Professional Services industry average of 14%.

In the above chart we have measured Genpact'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 Genpact .

What Can We Tell From Genpact's ROCE Trend?

We like the trends that we're seeing from Genpact. Over the last five years, returns on capital employed have risen substantially to 16%. 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 32%. This can indicate that there's plenty of opportunities to invest capital internally and at ever higher rates, a combination that's common among multi-baggers.

The Bottom Line On Genpact's ROCE

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 Genpact has. Investors may not be impressed by the favorable underlying trends yet because over the last five years the stock has only returned 7.7% to shareholders. So with that in mind, we think the stock deserves further research.

Genpact does come with some risks though, we found 2 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 1 of those is significant...

While Genpact isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets.

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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.