Is Now The Time To Put Zhejiang Shibao (HKG:1057) On Your Watchlist?

For beginners, it can seem like a good idea (and an exciting prospect) to buy a company that tells a good story to investors, even if it currently lacks a track record of revenue and profit. Unfortunately, these high risk investments often have little probability of ever paying off, and many investors pay a price to learn their lesson. While a well funded company may sustain losses for years, it will need to generate a profit eventually, or else investors will move on and the company will wither away.

In contrast to all that, many investors prefer to focus on companies like Zhejiang Shibao (HKG:1057), which has not only revenues, but also profits. While profit isn't the sole metric that should be considered when investing, it's worth recognising businesses that can consistently produce it.

View our latest analysis for Zhejiang Shibao

How Fast Is Zhejiang Shibao Growing?

If a company can keep growing earnings per share (EPS) long enough, its share price should eventually follow. Therefore, there are plenty of investors who like to buy shares in companies that are growing EPS. To the delight of shareholders, Zhejiang Shibao has achieved impressive annual EPS growth of 49%, compound, over the last three years. That sort of growth rarely ever lasts long, but it is well worth paying attention to when it happens.

Top-line growth is a great indicator that growth is sustainable, and combined with a high earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margin, it's a great way for a company to maintain a competitive advantage in the market. It's noted that Zhejiang Shibao's revenue from operations was lower than its revenue in the last twelve months, so that could distort our analysis of its margins. Zhejiang Shibao shareholders can take confidence from the fact that EBIT margins are up from 2.0% to 6.6%, and revenue is growing. Ticking those two boxes is a good sign of growth, in our book.

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.

While it's always good to see growing profits, you should always remember that a weak balance sheet could come back to bite. So check Zhejiang Shibao's balance sheet strength, before getting too excited.

Are Zhejiang Shibao Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

It should give investors a sense of security owning shares in a company if insiders also own shares, creating a close alignment their interests. So it is good to see that Zhejiang Shibao insiders have a significant amount of capital invested in the stock. To be specific, they have CN¥297m worth of shares. That shows significant buy-in, and may indicate conviction in the business strategy. Even though that's only about 3.2% of the company, it's enough money to indicate alignment between the leaders of the business and ordinary shareholders.

It's good to see that insiders are invested in the company, but are remuneration levels reasonable? A brief analysis of the CEO compensation suggests they are. Our analysis has discovered that the median total compensation for the CEOs of companies like Zhejiang Shibao with market caps between CN¥2.9b and CN¥12b is about CN¥3.5m.

Zhejiang Shibao's CEO took home a total compensation package of CN¥1.3m in the year prior to December 2023. First impressions seem to indicate a compensation policy that is favourable to shareholders. CEO compensation is hardly the most important aspect of a company to consider, but when it's reasonable, that gives a little more confidence that leadership are looking out for shareholder interests. It can also be a sign of good governance, more generally.

Is Zhejiang Shibao Worth Keeping An Eye On?

Zhejiang Shibao's earnings per share growth have been climbing higher at an appreciable rate. The sweetener is that insiders have a mountain of stock, and the CEO remuneration is quite reasonable. The drastic earnings growth indicates the business is going from strength to strength. Hopefully a trend that continues well into the future. Zhejiang Shibao certainly ticks a few boxes, so we think it's probably well worth further consideration. We should say that we've discovered 2 warning signs for Zhejiang Shibao that you should be aware of before investing here.

While opting for stocks without growing earnings and absent insider buying can yield results, for investors valuing these key metrics, here is a carefully selected list of companies in HK with promising growth potential and insider confidence.

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.