Investors are often guided by the idea of discovering 'the next big thing', even if that means buying 'story stocks' without any revenue, let alone profit. But as Peter Lynch said in One Up On Wall Street, 'Long shots almost never pay off.' Loss making companies can act like a sponge for capital - so investors should be cautious that they're not throwing good money after bad.
So if this idea of high risk and high reward doesn't suit, you might be more interested in profitable, growing companies, like Narayana Hrudayalaya (NSE:NH). Even if this company is fairly valued by the market, investors would agree that generating consistent profits will continue to provide Narayana Hrudayalaya with the means to add long-term value to shareholders.
Generally, companies experiencing growth in earnings per share (EPS) should see similar trends in share price. That makes EPS growth an attractive quality for any company. It certainly is nice to see that Narayana Hrudayalaya has managed to grow EPS by 24% per year over three years. As a general rule, we'd say that if a company can keep up that sort of growth, shareholders will be beaming.
Careful consideration of revenue growth and earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margins can help inform a view on the sustainability of the recent profit growth. Narayana Hrudayalaya maintained stable EBIT margins over the last year, all while growing revenue 14% to ₹60b. That's encouraging news for the company!
The chart below shows how the company's bottom and top lines have progressed over time. Click on the chart to see the exact numbers.
Check out our latest analysis for Narayana Hrudayalaya
Of course the knack is to find stocks that have their best days in the future, not in the past. You could base your opinion on past performance, of course, but you may also want to check this interactive graph of professional analyst EPS forecasts for Narayana Hrudayalaya.
Theory would suggest that it's an encouraging sign to see high insider ownership of a company, since it ties company performance directly to the financial success of its management. So as you can imagine, the fact that Narayana Hrudayalaya insiders own a significant number of shares certainly is appealing. Indeed, with a collective holding of 65%, company insiders are in control and have plenty of capital behind the venture. This should be seen as a good thing, as it means insiders have a personal interest in delivering the best outcomes for shareholders. ₹254b That means they have plenty of their own capital riding on the performance of the business!
If you believe that share price follows earnings per share you should definitely be delving further into Narayana Hrudayalaya's strong EPS growth. Further, the high level of insider ownership is impressive and suggests that the management appreciates the EPS growth and has faith in Narayana Hrudayalaya's continuing strength. On the balance of its merits, solid EPS growth and company insiders who are aligned with the shareholders would indicate a business that is worthy of further research. Now, you could try to make up your mind on Narayana Hrudayalaya by focusing on just these factors, or you could also consider how its price-to-earnings ratio compares to other companies in its industry.
While opting for stocks without growing earnings and absent insider buying can yield results, for investors valuing these key metrics, here is a carefully selected list of companies in IN with promising growth potential and insider confidence.
Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction.
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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.