After reading Neovasc Inc’s (NASDAQ:NVCN) most recent earnings announcement (31 December 2017), I found it useful to look back at how the company has performed in the past and compare this against the latest numbers. As a long term investor, I pay close attention to earnings trend, rather than the figures published at one point in time. I also compare against an industry benchmark to check whether Neovasc’s performance has been impacted by industry movements. In this article I briefly touch on my key findings. Check out our latest analysis for Neovasc

Commentary On NVCN’s Past Performance

To account for any quarterly or half-yearly updates, I use the ‘latest twelve-month’ data, which annualizes the latest 6-month earnings release, or some times, the latest annual report is already the most recent financial data. This blend allows me to assess different companies on a more comparable basis, using new information. For Neovasc, its most recent bottom-line (trailing twelve month) is -US$22.91M, which, in comparison to the prior year’s figure, has become less negative. Since these values are somewhat myopic, I’ve estimated an annualized five-year figure for Neovasc’s net income, which stands at -US$23.32M. This suggests that, although net income is negative, it has become less negative over the years.

We can further analyze Neovasc’s loss by looking at what the industry has been experiencing over the past few years. Each year, for the last five years Neovasc’s top-line has increased by a mere 4.90%, on average. The company’s inability to breakeven has been aided by the relatively flat top-line in the past. Viewing growth from a sector-level, the US medical equipment industry has been growing its average earnings by double-digit 11.06% over the past year, and 10.37% over the last five years. This suggests that, although Neovasc is currently unprofitable, it may have been aided by industry tailwinds, moving earnings into a more favorable position.

What does this mean?

Though Neovasc’s past data is helpful, it is only one aspect of my investment thesis. Companies that incur net loss is always difficult to forecast what will happen in the future and when. The most insightful step is to assess company-specific issues Neovasc may be facing and whether management guidance has consistently been met in the past. I recommend you continue to research Neovasc to get a more holistic view of the stock by looking at:

• 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for NVCN’s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for NVCN’s outlook.

• 2. Financial Health: Is NVCN’s operations financially sustainable? Balance sheets can be hard to analyze, which is why we’ve done it for you. Check out our financial health checks here.

• 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore our free list of these great stocks here.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the trailing twelve months from 31 December 2017. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.
To help readers see pass the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price sensitive company announcements.

The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned.