The 24% return this week takes Black Cat Syndicate's (ASX:BC8) shareholders one-year gains to 119%

Unfortunately, investing is risky - companies can and do go bankrupt. But if you pick the right stock, you can make a lot more than 100%. For example, the Black Cat Syndicate Limited (ASX:BC8) share price had more than doubled in just one year - up 119%. It's also good to see the share price up 53% over the last quarter. The company reported its financial results recently; you can catch up on the latest numbers by reading our company report. In contrast, the longer term returns are negative, since the share price is 12% lower than it was three years ago.

After a strong gain in the past week, it's worth seeing if longer term returns have been driven by improving fundamentals.

View our latest analysis for Black Cat Syndicate

Given that Black Cat Syndicate didn't make a profit in the last twelve months, we'll focus on revenue growth to form a quick view of its business development. When a company doesn't make profits, we'd generally hope to see good revenue growth. As you can imagine, fast revenue growth, when maintained, often leads to fast profit growth.

Over the last twelve months, Black Cat Syndicate's revenue grew by 158%. That's well above most other pre-profit companies. Meanwhile, the market has paid attention, sending the share price soaring 119% in response. That sort of revenue growth is bound to attract attention, even if the company doesn't turn a profit. Given the positive sentiment around the stock we're cautious, but there's no doubt its worth watching.

You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

We consider it positive that insiders have made significant purchases in the last year. Even so, future earnings will be far more important to whether current shareholders make money. This free interactive report on Black Cat Syndicate's earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that Black Cat Syndicate shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 119% over the last year. Notably the five-year annualised TSR loss of 0.2% per year compares very unfavourably with the recent share price performance. We generally put more weight on the long term performance over the short term, but the recent improvement could hint at a (positive) inflection point within the business. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. For instance, we've identified 4 warning signs for Black Cat Syndicate (2 make us uncomfortable) that you should be aware of.

If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: most of them are flying under the radar).

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

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.