Should You Be Adding Environmental Group (ASX:EGL) To Your Watchlist Today?

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. Sometimes these stories can cloud the minds of investors, leading them to invest with their emotions rather than on the merit of good company fundamentals. 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 Environmental Group (ASX:EGL). 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.

View our latest analysis for Environmental Group

How Fast Is Environmental Group Growing?

The market is a voting machine in the short term, but a weighing machine in the long term, so you'd expect share price to follow earnings per share (EPS) outcomes eventually. So it makes sense that experienced investors pay close attention to company EPS when undertaking investment research. It certainly is nice to see that Environmental Group has managed to grow EPS by 24% per year over three years. As a general rule, we'd say that if a company can keep up that sort of growth, shareholders will be beaming.

One way to double-check a company's growth is to look at how its revenue, and earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) margins are changing. Environmental Group shareholders can take confidence from the fact that EBIT margins are up from 5.0% to 7.2%, and revenue is growing. 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. To see the actual numbers, click on the chart.

Since Environmental Group is no giant, with a market capitalisation of AU$150m, you should definitely check its cash and debt before getting too excited about its prospects.

Are Environmental Group Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

It's pleasing to see company leaders with putting their money on the line, so to speak, because it increases alignment of incentives between the people running the business, and its true owners. Shareholders will be pleased by the fact that insiders own Environmental Group shares worth a considerable sum. To be specific, they have AU$36m worth of shares. That shows significant buy-in, and may indicate conviction in the business strategy. That amounts to 24% of the company, demonstrating a degree of high-level alignment with shareholders.

It means a lot to see insiders invested in the business, but shareholders may be wondering if remuneration policies are in their best interest. Our quick analysis into CEO remuneration would seem to indicate they are. Our analysis has discovered that the median total compensation for the CEOs of companies like Environmental Group with market caps under AU$290m is about AU$453k.

Environmental Group offered total compensation worth AU$373k to its CEO in the year to June 2024. That is actually below the median for CEO's of similarly sized companies. While the level of CEO compensation shouldn't be the biggest factor in how the company is viewed, modest remuneration is a positive, because it suggests that the board keeps shareholder interests in mind. Generally, arguments can be made that reasonable pay levels attest to good decision-making.

Does Environmental Group Deserve A Spot On Your Watchlist?

If you believe that share price follows earnings per share you should definitely be delving further into Environmental Group's strong EPS growth. If you need more convincing beyond that EPS growth rate, don't forget about the reasonable remuneration and the high insider ownership. This may only be a fast rundown, but the key takeaway is that Environmental Group is worth keeping an eye on. It's still necessary to consider the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 2 warning signs with Environmental Group , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

There's always the possibility of doing well buying stocks that are not growing earnings and do not have insiders buying shares. But for those who consider these important metrics, we encourage you to check out companies that do have those features. You can access a tailored list of Australian companies which have demonstrated growth backed by significant insider holdings.

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

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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.