It is common for many investors, especially those who are inexperienced, to buy shares in companies that have a good history, even if those companies are loss-making. But as Peter Lynch said in One Up on Wall Street, “Long shots almost never pay off.” A loss-making company has not yet proven itself with profits, and eventually the inflow of external capital may dry up.

Despite being in the age of astronomical investing in tech stocks, many investors still adopt a more traditional strategy; buy shares in profitable companies like Megasoft (NSE: MEGASOFT). While profit isn’t the only metric to consider when investing, it’s worth recognizing companies that can consistently produce it.

See our latest analysis for Megasoft

How fast is Megasoft growing?

The market is a short-term voting machine, but a long-term weighing machine, so you would expect the stock price to eventually follow earnings per share (EPS) results. It therefore makes sense for experienced investors to pay close attention to company EPS when undertaking investment research. Megasoft shareholders have reason to rejoice as their annual EPS growth over the past 3 years has been 53%. Such rapid growth may well be fleeting, but it should be more than enough to pique the interest of wary stock pickers.

One way to check a company’s growth is to look at the evolution of its revenues and its earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) margins. The prior 12 months is something Megasoft will want to put behind them after seeing a decline in EBIT margin and revenue for the period. This will not facilitate profit growth, to say the least.

The chart below shows how the company’s top and bottom line has grown over time. To see the actual numbers, click on the chart.

Megasoft is not a big company, considering its market capitalization of ₹2.9 billion. It is therefore very important to check its balance sheet strength.

Are Megasoft insiders aligned with all shareholders?

It’s good practice to check a company’s compensation policies to make sure the CEO and management team aren’t putting their own interests ahead of the shareholder with excessive pay packages. Our analysis revealed that the median total compensation of CEOs of companies like Megasoft with market caps below ₹17 billion is around ₹3.6 million.

The CEO of Megasoft only received a total compensation of ₹3.1 million in the year to March 2022. You can consider this salary as somewhat symbolic which suggests that the CEO does not doesn’t need a lot of pay to stay motivated. While the level of CEO compensation should not be the most important factor in how the company is perceived, modest compensation is positive because it suggests that the board has the best interests in mind. shareholders. It can also be a sign of good governance more generally.

Does Megasoft deserve a spot on your watch list?

Megasoft’s earnings per share growth has increased at an appreciable pace. Such rapid EPS growth begs the question: has the company reached an inflection point? Meanwhile, the CEO’s very reasonable salary is great insurance, as it indicates an absence of wasteful spending habits. Megasoft therefore appears to be a good quality growth stock, at first glance. It is worth watching. What about the risks? Every business has them, and we’ve spotted 2 warning signs for Megasoft you should know.

The beauty of investing is that you can invest in almost any business you want. But if you’d rather focus on stocks that have been the subject of insider buying, here’s a list of companies with insider buying in the last three months.

Please note that insider trading discussed in this article refers to reportable trading in the relevant jurisdiction.

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This Simply Wall St article is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It is not a recommendation to buy or sell stocks and does not take into account your objectives or financial situation. Our goal is to bring you targeted long-term analysis based on fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not take into account the latest announcements from price-sensitive companies or qualitative materials. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.