The worst result, after buying shares in a company (assuming no leverage), would be if you lose all the money you put in. But if you buy shares in a really great company, you can more than double your money. For example, the Smart Parking Limited (ASX:SPZ) share price has soared 219% in the last three years. How nice for those who held the stock! On top of that, the share price is up 29% in about a quarter.

Now it's worth having a look at the company's fundamentals too, because that will help us determine if the long term shareholder return has matched the performance of the underlying business.

Check out our latest analysis for Smart Parking

While Smart Parking made a small profit, in the last year, we think that the market is probably more focussed on the top line growth at the moment. Generally speaking, we'd consider a stock like this alongside loss-making companies, simply because the quantum of the profit is so low. For shareholders to have confidence a company will grow profits significantly, it must grow revenue.

In the last 3 years Smart Parking saw its revenue grow at 24% per year. That's much better than most loss-making companies. Along the way, the share price gained 47% per year, a solid pop by our standards. But it does seem like the market is paying attention to strong revenue growth. Nonetheless, we'd say Smart Parking is still worth investigating - successful businesses can often keep growing for long periods.

The graphic below depicts how earnings and revenue have changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

We know that Smart Parking has improved its bottom line over the last three years, but what does the future have in store? This free interactive report on Smart Parking's balance sheet strength is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

A Different Perspective

We're pleased to report that Smart Parking shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 57% over one year. That gain is better than the annual TSR over five years, which is 3%. Therefore it seems like sentiment around the company has been positive lately. Someone with an optimistic perspective could view the recent improvement in TSR as indicating that the business itself is getting better with time. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Take risks, for example - Smart Parking has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

We will like Smart Parking better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on Australian exchanges.

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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.