KAPITALEFFEKTIVITET OCH FRAMTIDA AKTIEAVKASTNING: EN STUDIE AV ROIC PÅ NASDAQ STOCKHOLM

Sammanfattning

This study examines the relationship between capital efficiency, measured as return oninvested capital (ROIC), and future stock returns for companies listed on NasdaqStockholm for the period 2015-2024. The purpose with this study is to analyze ifcompanies with higher ROIC tends to generate higher future returns, as well as if thisrelationship varies between market segments as Large Cap, Mid Cap and Small Cap andbetween different GICS-sectors. The study is based on theories about capital structure,agency problems, the efficient market hypothesis and capital efficiency. The theoriestogether motivate why ROIC can work as a relevant indicator for value creation and futuregrowth.The research is based on quantitative secondary data and uses regression analyses to testthe relationship between ROIC and future stock returns as well as excess returns. Theresults shows that ROIC has a positive relationship to future stock returns in some models,but the relationship varies between time periods, market segment and sector. In mostcases the relationship is weakened when considering risk adjustment and controlvariables, which indicates that ROIC can’t explain future stock returns alone. Theanalyses that were made shows that the relationship is stronger in some segments thanothers, which means that industry specific and structural differences play a big role.The study contributes to financial research by examining ROIC on the Swedish stockmarket with focus on sector differences and market segments, which is a relativelyunexplored area. The results are practically relevant for investors and managers that wantto understand how capital efficiency can connect to future value creation.