Benzinga Pro data, Prestige Consumer (NYSE:PBH) reported Q4 sales of $285.87 million. Earnings fell to a loss of $240.55 million, resulting in a 563.04% decrease from last quarter. Prestige Consumer reached earnings of $51.95 million and sales of $275.52 million in Q3.

What Is Return On Capital Employed?

Return on Capital Employed is a measure of yearly pre-tax profit relative to capital employed by a business. Changes in earnings and sales indicate shifts in a company's ROCE. A higher ROCE is generally representative of successful growth of a company and is a sign of higher earnings per share in the future. A low or negative ROCE suggests the opposite. In Q4, Prestige Consumer posted an ROCE of -0.17%.

Keep in mind, while ROCE is a good measure of a company's recent performance, it is not a highly reliable predictor of a company's earnings or sales in the near future.

For Prestige Consumer, a negative ROCE ratio of -0.17% suggests that management may not be effectively allocating their capital. Effective capital allocation is a positive indicator that a company will achieve more durable success and favorable long-term returns; poor capital allocation can be a leech on the performance of a company over time.

Analyst Predictions

Prestige Consumer reported Q4 earnings per share at $1.07/share, which beat analyst predictions of $1.04/share.

This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and reviewed by an editor.