If we want to find a potential multi-bagger, often there are underlying trends that can provide clues. Firstly, we'd want to identify a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and then alongside that, an ever-increasing base of capital employed. Ultimately, this demonstrates that it's a business that is reinvesting profits at increasing rates of return. So when we looked at the ROCE trend of NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP) we really liked what we saw.

Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)

If you haven't worked with ROCE before, it measures the 'return' (pre-tax profit) a company generates from capital employed in its business. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for NetApp:

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

0.28 = US$1.4b ÷ (US$9.3b - US$4.5b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to July 2024).

Thus, NetApp has an ROCE of 28%. In absolute terms that's a great return and it's even better than the Tech industry average of 8.2%.

In the above chart we have measured NetApp's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free analyst report for NetApp .

What Does the ROCE Trend For NetApp Tell Us?

NetApp has not disappointed with their ROCE growth. The figures show that over the last five years, ROCE has grown 27% whilst employing roughly the same amount of capital. 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. On that front, things are looking good so it's worth exploring what management has said about growth plans going forward.

Another thing to note, NetApp has a high ratio of current liabilities to total assets of 48%. This effectively means that suppliers (or short-term creditors) are funding a large portion of the business, so just be aware that this can introduce some elements of risk. Ideally we'd like to see this reduce as that would mean fewer obligations bearing risks.

The Bottom Line On NetApp's ROCE

To bring it all together, NetApp has done well to increase the returns it's generating from its capital employed. Since the stock has returned a staggering 176% to shareholders over the last five years, it looks like investors are recognizing these changes. In light of that, we think it's worth looking further into this stock because if NetApp can keep these trends up, it could have a bright future ahead.

While NetApp looks impressive, no company is worth an infinite price. The intrinsic value infographic for NTAP helps visualize whether it is currently trading for a fair price.

NetApp 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.