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 % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | 35 | 110 | 21 | 124 | 35 | — |
| FY2021 | 37 | 190 | 37 | 190 | 35 | 13 |
| FY2022 | 40 | 115 | 30 | 125 | 42 | 16 |
| FY2023 | 35 | 129 | 34 | 130 | 44 | 8 |
| FY2024 | 54 | 164 | 39 | 179 | 28 | 9 |
| FY2025 | 49 | 160 | 37 | 172 | 40 | 12 |
| FY2026 | 62 | 149 | 40 | 171 | 31 | 14 |
Plain-English explanations of each figure in the table above, and what a beginner typically looks at. These are educational descriptions only, not advice.