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ROIC % measures how well a company generates cash flow relative to the capital it has invested in its business. It is also called ROC %. School Specialty's annualized return on invested capital (ROIC %) for the quarter that ended in Dec. 2019 was -29.42%.
As of today (2026-09-11), School Specialty's WACC % is 0.00%. School Specialty's ROIC % is 0.00% (calculated using TTM income statement data).
School Specialty earns returns that do not match up to its cost of capital. It will destroy value as it grows.
ROIC % measures how well a company generates cash flow relative to the capital it has invested in its business. It is also called ROC %. The reason book values of debt and equity are used is because the book values are the capital the company received when issuing the debt or receiving the equity investments.
There are four key components to this definition. The first is the use of operating income or EBIT rather than net income in the numerator. The second is the tax adjustment to this operating income or EBIT, computed as a hypothetical tax based on an effective or marginal tax rate. The third is the use of book values for invested capital, rather than market values. The final is the timing difference; the capital invested is from the end of the prior year whereas the operating income or EBIT is the current year's number.
Why is ROIC % important?
Because it costs money to raise capital. A firm that generates higher returns on investment than it costs the company to raise the capital needed for that investment is earning excess returns. A firm that expects to continue generating positive excess returns on new investments in the future will see its value increase as growth increases, whereas a firm that earns returns that do not match up to its cost of capital will destroy value as it grows.
As of today, School Specialty's WACC % is 0.00%. School Specialty's ROIC % is 0.00% (calculated using TTM income statement data).
School Specialty earns returns that do not match up to its cost of capital. It will destroy value as it grows.
Be Aware
Like ROE % and ROA %, ROIC % is calculated with only 12 months of data. Fluctuations in the company's earnings or business cycles can affect the ratio drastically. It is important to look at the ratio from a long term perspective.
School Specialty ROIC % Related Terms
School Specialty ROIC % Historical Data
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The historical data trend for School Specialty's ROIC % can be seen below:
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
For the Specialty Retail subindustry, School Specialty's ROIC %, along with its competitors' market caps and ROIC % data, can be viewed below:
* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.
School Specialty ROIC % vs Retail - Cyclical Industry
For the Retail - Cyclical industry and Consumer Cyclical sector, School Specialty's ROIC % distribution charts can be found below:
* The bar in red indicates where School Specialty's ROIC % falls into.
Note:
The Operating Income data used here is four times the quarterly (Dec. 2019) data.
The tax rate is limited to between 0% and 100%.
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
School Specialty (SCOO) has a ROIC % of -29.42% as of Dec. 2019. Return on invested capital is the ratio of current-period net income to average two-period invested capital. View historical data on School Specialty and its competitors.
Is School Specialty's ROIC % too high?
School Specialty's current ROIC % is -29.42%. Overall, School Specialty has a GF Score™ of 12/100, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does School Specialty's ROIC % compare to PIRRQ and JADG?
School Specialty's ROIC % of -29.42% can be compared against companies in the Retail - Cyclical industry. The industry median ROIC % is 4.53. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good ROIC % for a Retail - Cyclical company?
The median ROIC % among Retail - Cyclical companies is 4.53, based on 1,109 companies in the industry. Companies in the top quartile (top 25%) have a ROIC % significantly above this median, while those in the bottom quartile fall well below. However, ROIC % should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high ROIC % mean?
A high ROIC % can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. Return on invested capital is the ratio of current-period net income to average two-period invested capital. View historical data on School Specialty and its competitors. For the Retail - Cyclical industry, the median ROIC % is 4.53 — values significantly above this may indicate overvaluation, while values below may suggest a bargain or underlying issues. School Specialty's current ROIC % is -29.42%. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is School Specialty stock overvalued right now?
School Specialty (SCOO) has a current ROIC % of -29.42%. The current ROIC % is -29.42%. School Specialty's overall GF Score™ is 12/100. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is ROIC % calculated?
ROIC % is calculated from a company's financial statements. For School Specialty (SCOO), the current ROIC % is -29.42% as of Dec. 2019. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.
School Specialty Inc is a distributor of supplies, furniture, technology products, supplemental learning products, and curriculum solutions, primarily to the education marketplace. Its operating business segments are Distribution and Curriculum. The company generates maximum revenue from the Distribution Segment. Its Distribution segment offers products primarily to the PreK-12 education market that include basic classroom supplies and office products, instructional materials, indoor and outdoor furniture and equipment, physical education equipment, classroom technology, and planning and organizational products.
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