How to read this: these lines track how the company manages day-to-day cash. Debtor days is how long customers take to pay; inventory days is how long stock sits before selling; days payable is how long the company takes to pay its own suppliers. Fewer debtor and inventory days generally means cash comes in faster; more days payable means the company holds its cash longer. The right level varies a lot by industry, so the trend over time matters more than any single number.
How to read this: return on capital employed (ROCE) shows how much operating profit the company earns from every unit of capital it uses, as a percentage. A higher, steady line over the years suggests the business uses its capital efficiently. As with most ratios, the multi-year trend tells you more than any single year.
| Period | Debtor Days | Inventory Days | Days Payable | Cash Conversion Cycle | Working Capital Days | ROCE % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2006 | 98 | 97 | 78 | 118 | 123 | — |
| FY2007 | 93 | 118 | 86 | 125 | 177 | 5 |
| FY2013 | 20 | 83 | 85 | 19 | -28 | — |
| FY2014 | 13 | 72 | 42 | 43 | 16 | 13 |
| FY2015 | 10 | 63 | 53 | 20 | -11 | 17 |
| FY2025 | 13 | 98 | 32 | 80 | 29 | — |
| FY2026 | 15 | 125 | 30 | 110 | 61 | 18 |
Plain-English explanations of each figure in the table above, and what a beginner typically looks at. These are educational descriptions only, not advice.