There are a few key trends to look for if we want to identify the next multi-bagger. Typically, we'll want to notice a trend of growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and alongside that, an expanding base of capital employed. This shows us that it's a compounding machine, able to continually reinvest its earnings back into the business and generate higher returns. Speaking of which, we noticed some great changes in Progyny's (NASDAQ:PGNY) returns on capital, so let's have a look.

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What Is 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. To calculate this metric for Progyny, this is the formula:

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

0.15 = US$67m ÷ (US$607m - US$169m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2024).

Thus, Progyny has an ROCE of 15%. On its own, that's a standard return, however it's much better than the 10% generated by the Healthcare industry.

See our latest analysis for Progyny

Above you can see how the current ROCE for Progyny compares to its prior returns on capital, but there's only so much you can tell from the past. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free analyst report for Progyny .

What Does the ROCE Trend For Progyny Tell Us?

Progyny is displaying some positive trends. The data shows that returns on capital have increased substantially over the last five years to 15%. 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 284%. The increasing returns on a growing amount of capital is common amongst multi-baggers and that's why we're impressed.

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 Progyny has. Since the total return from the stock has been almost flat over the last five years, there might be an opportunity here if the valuation looks good. With that in mind, we believe the promising trends warrant this stock for further investigation.

On the other side of ROCE, we have to consider valuation. That's why we have a FREE intrinsic value estimation for PGNY on our platform that is definitely worth checking out.

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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.