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 | 98 | 99 | 119 | 78 | 24 | — |
| FY2021 | 120 | 27 | 120 | 27 | -8 | 16 |
| FY2022 | 116 | 82 | 179 | 19 | 7 | 35 |
| FY2023 | 98 | 98 | 175 | 22 | -21 | 28 |
| FY2024 | 96 | 82 | 96 | 82 | 39 | 28 |
| FY2025 | 122 | 130 | 201 | 51 | 9 | 19 |
| FY2026 | 121 | 134 | 194 | 61 | 74 | 29 |
Plain-English explanations of each figure in the table above, and what a beginner typically looks at. These are educational descriptions only, not advice.