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For beginners, it can seem like a good idea (and an exciting prospect) to buy a company that tells a good story to investors, even if it currently lacks a track record of revenue and profit. But the reality is that when a company loses money each year, for long enough, its investors will usually take their share of those losses. A loss-making company is yet to prove itself with profit, and eventually the inflow of external capital may dry up.
In contrast to all that, many investors prefer to focus on companies like Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU), which has not only revenues, but also profits. Even if this company is fairly valued by the market, investors would agree that generating consistent profits will continue to provide Peabody Energy with the means to add long-term value to shareholders.
View our latest analysis for Peabody Energy
Peabody Energy's Improving Profits
In the last three years Peabody Energy's earnings per share took off; so much so that it's a bit disingenuous to use these figures to try and deduce long term estimates. So it would be better to isolate the growth rate over the last year for our analysis. In impressive fashion, Peabody Energy's EPS grew from US$3.03 to US$9.00, over the previous 12 months. Year on year growth of 198% is certainly a sight to behold. The best case scenario? That the business has hit a true inflection point.
Top-line growth is a great indicator that growth is sustainable, and combined with a high earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margin, it's a great way for a company to maintain a competitive advantage in the market. The music to the ears of Peabody Energy shareholders is that EBIT margins have grown from 11% to 26% in the last 12 months and revenues are on an upwards trend as well. Both of which are great metrics to check off for potential growth.
You can take a look at the company's revenue and earnings growth trend, in the chart below. Click on the chart to see the exact numbers.
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 Peabody Energy.
Are Peabody Energy Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?
It's pleasing to see company leaders with putting their money on the line, so to speak, because it increases alignment of incentives between the people running the business, and its true owners. Shareholders will be pleased by the fact that insiders own Peabody Energy shares worth a considerable sum. Indeed, they hold US$42m worth of its stock. That shows significant buy-in, and may indicate conviction in the business strategy. Despite being just 1.0% of the company, the value of that investment is enough to show insiders have plenty riding on the venture.