Lade Company makes and sells a product that is used by many food manufacturers. The sales have grown steadily since the company was launched but the profit and profitability has been disappointing. The results for the past three years are: 20X2 20X1 Income Statement information Sales - units Sales value - 000 Net profit before interest and tax - 000 Net profit after tax - 000 150,000 3,000 480 336 120,000 2,640 642 368 20X0 100,000 2,400 840 400 Ratios 20X2 20X1 20X0 Profitability Ratios Gross profit margin Net profit margin Return on Capital Employed Return on Common Equity (ROCE) 30% 16% 39% 24.3% 50% 35% 10.4% 24.4% 14.8% 13.3% 11.1% 15.0% 3.6 5.5 5.9 Liquidity and Asset Management Ratios Current ratio Acid Test Ratio Days' sales in inventory Days' sales in receivables Days' sales in payables 2.1 42 3.5 43 2.7 54 41 46 40 19 22 27 Capital Structure Ratios Total Liabilities / Total Equity Capital 52.4% 56.7% 28.7% Suggest ways by which the Return on Capital Employed could be improved Lade Company makes and sells a product that is used by many food manufacturers. The sales have grown steadily since the company was launched but the profit and profitability has been disappointing. The results for the past three years are: 20X2 20X1 Income Statement information Sales - units Sales value - 000 Net profit before interest and tax - 000 Net profit after tax - 000 150,000 3,000 480 336 120,000 2,640 642 368 20X0 100,000 2,400 840 400 Ratios 20X2 20X1 20X0 Profitability Ratios Gross profit margin Net profit margin Return on Capital Employed Return on Common Equity (ROCE) 30% 16% 39% 24.3% 50% 35% 10.4% 24.4% 14.8% 13.3% 11.1% 15.0% 3.6 5.5 5.9 Liquidity and Asset Management Ratios Current ratio Acid Test Ratio Days' sales in inventory Days' sales in receivables Days' sales in payables 2.1 42 3.5 43 2.7 54 41 46 40 19 22 27 Capital Structure Ratios Total Liabilities / Total Equity Capital 52.4% 56.7% 28.7% Suggest ways by which the Return on Capital Employed could be improved