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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 as Peter Lynch said in One Up On Wall Street, 'Long shots almost never pay off.' Loss-making companies are always racing against time to reach financial sustainability, so investors in these companies may be taking on more risk than they should.
So if this idea of high risk and high reward doesn't suit, you might be more interested in profitable, growing companies, like Kontoor Brands (NYSE:KTB). Even if this company is fairly valued by the market, investors would agree that generating consistent profits will continue to provide Kontoor Brands with the means to add long-term value to shareholders.
See our latest analysis for Kontoor Brands
How Quickly Is Kontoor Brands Increasing Earnings Per Share?
Generally, companies experiencing growth in earnings per share (EPS) should see similar trends in share price. That means EPS growth is considered a real positive by most successful long-term investors. We can see that in the last three years Kontoor Brands grew its EPS by 9.4% per year. That's a good rate of growth, if it can be sustained.
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. It was a year of stability for Kontoor Brands as both revenue and EBIT margins remained have been flat over the past year. That's not bad, but it doesn't point to ongoing future growth, either.
In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings and revenue, over time. Click on the chart to see the exact numbers.
The trick, as an investor, is to find companies that are going to perform well in the future, not just in the past. While crystal balls don't exist, you can check our visualization of consensus analyst forecasts for Kontoor Brands' future EPS 100% free.
Are Kontoor Brands Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?
It should give investors a sense of security owning shares in a company if insiders also own shares, creating a close alignment their interests. So it is good to see that Kontoor Brands insiders have a significant amount of capital invested in the stock. Given insiders own a significant chunk of shares, currently valued at US$69m, they have plenty of motivation to push the business to succeed. That's certainly enough to let shareholders know that management will be very focussed on long term growth.