Investors are often guided by the idea of discovering 'the next big thing', even if that means buying 'story stocks' without any revenue, let alone profit. But as Peter Lynch said in One Up On Wall Street, 'Long shots almost never pay off.' A loss-making company is yet to prove itself with profit, and eventually the inflow of external capital may dry up.

If this kind of company isn't your style, you like companies that generate revenue, and even earn profits, then you may well be interested in CFM Holdings (Catalist:5EB). Now this is not to say that the company presents the best investment opportunity around, but profitability is a key component to success in business.

Check out our latest analysis for CFM Holdings

How Fast Is CFM Holdings Growing Its Earnings Per Share?

In business, profits are a key measure of success; and share prices tend to reflect earnings per share (EPS) performance. So for many budding investors, improving EPS is considered a good sign. Commendations have to be given in seeing that CFM Holdings grew its EPS from S$0.0021 to S$0.0094, in one short year. While it's difficult to sustain growth at that level, it bodes well for the company's outlook for the future. This could point to the business hitting a point of inflection.

Careful consideration of revenue growth and earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margins can help inform a view on the sustainability of the recent profit growth. The good news is that CFM Holdings is growing revenues, and EBIT margins improved by 6.8 percentage points to 7.4%, over the last year. That's great to see, on both counts.

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.

CFM Holdings isn't a huge company, given its market capitalisation of S$21m. That makes it extra important to check on its balance sheet strength.

Are CFM Holdings Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

Theory would suggest that it's an encouraging sign to see high insider ownership of a company, since it ties company performance directly to the financial success of its management. So as you can imagine, the fact that CFM Holdings insiders own a significant number of shares certainly is appealing. To be exact, company insiders hold 71% of the company, so their decisions have a significant impact on their investments. Intuition will tell you this is a good sign because it suggests they will be incentivised to build value for shareholders over the long term. Valued at only S$21m CFM Holdings is really small for a listed company. So despite a large proportional holding, insiders only have S$15m worth of stock. That might not be a huge sum but it should be enough to keep insiders motivated!

Does CFM Holdings Deserve A Spot On Your Watchlist?

CFM Holdings' earnings have taken off in quite an impressive fashion. That EPS growth certainly is attention grabbing, and the large insider ownership only serves to further stoke our interest. At times fast EPS growth is a sign the business has reached an inflection point, so there's a potential opportunity to be had here. So at the surface level, CFM Holdings is worth putting on your watchlist; after all, shareholders do well when the market underestimates fast growing companies. Still, you should learn about the 1 warning sign we've spotted with CFM Holdings.

Although CFM Holdings certainly looks good, it may appeal to more investors if insiders were buying up shares. If you like to see insider buying, then this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying, could be exactly what you're looking for.

Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.

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