Looking Into iMedia Brands's Return On Capital Employed

In Q1, iMedia Brands IMBI posted sales of $113.20 million. Earnings were up 48.52%, but iMedia Brands still reported an overall loss of $2.05 million. In Q4, iMedia Brands brought in $124.80 million in sales but lost $1.38 million in earnings.

What Is ROCE?

Changes in earnings and sales indicate shifts in iMedia Brands's Return on Capital Employed, a measure of yearly pre-tax profit relative to capital employed by a business. Generally, a higher ROCE suggests successful growth of a company and is a sign of higher earnings per share in the future. In Q1, iMedia Brands posted an ROCE of -0.04%.

It is important to keep in mind ROCE evaluates past performance and is not used as a predictive tool. It is a good measure of a company's recent performance, but several factors could affect earnings and sales in the near future.

ROCE is an important metric for the comparison of similar companies. A relatively high ROCE shows iMedia Brands is potentially operating at a higher level of efficiency than other companies in its industry. If the company is generating high profits with its current level of capital, some of that money can be reinvested in more capital which will generally lead to higher returns and earnings per share growth.

For iMedia Brands, the return on capital employed ratio shows the current amount of assets may not actually be helping the company achieve higher returns, a note many investors will take into account when making long-term financial decisions.

Q1 Earnings Recap

iMedia Brands reported Q1 earnings per share at $-0.21/share, which beat analyst predictions of $-0.37/share.