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 | 34 | 19 | 48 | 5 | 9 | — |
| FY2007 | 35 | 28 | 44 | 19 | 20 | 16 |
| FY2011 | 42 | 23 | 64 | 0 | -19 | — |
| FY2012 | 34 | 18 | 65 | -13 | -23 | 16 |
| FY2013 | 28 | 19 | 57 | -10 | -25 | 11 |
| FY2014 | 37 | 25 | 77 | -15 | -32 | 3 |
| FY2015 | 43 | 22 | 74 | -10 | -22 | 3 |
Plain-English explanations of each figure in the table above, and what a beginner typically looks at. These are educational descriptions only, not advice.