Is Now The Time To Put Sky Gold (NSE:SKYGOLD) On Your Watchlist?

The excitement of investing in a company that can reverse its fortunes is a big draw for some speculators, so even companies that have no revenue, no profit, and a record of falling short, can manage to find investors. 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.

In contrast to all that, many investors prefer to focus on companies like Sky Gold (NSE:SKYGOLD), which has not only revenues, but also profits. While this doesn't necessarily speak to whether it's undervalued, the profitability of the business is enough to warrant some appreciation - especially if its growing.

Check out our latest analysis for Sky Gold

Sky Gold's Improving Profits

Over the last three years, Sky Gold has grown earnings per share (EPS) at as impressive rate from a relatively low point, resulting in a three year percentage growth rate that isn't particularly indicative of expected future performance. So it would be better to isolate the growth rate over the last year for our analysis. To the delight of shareholders, Sky Gold's EPS soared from ₹15.17 to ₹24.95, over the last year. That's a commendable gain of 64%.

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. EBIT margins for Sky Gold remained fairly unchanged over the last year, however the company should be pleased to report its revenue growth for the period of 36% to ₹15b. That's progress.

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.

Sky Gold isn't a huge company, given its market capitalisation of ₹13b. That makes it extra important to check on its balance sheet strength.

Are Sky Gold Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

Seeing insiders owning a large portion of the shares on issue is often a good sign. Their incentives will be aligned with the investors and there's less of a probability in a sudden sell-off that would impact the share price. So as you can imagine, the fact that Sky Gold insiders own a significant number of shares certainly is appealing. To be exact, company insiders hold 70% 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. In terms of absolute value, insiders have ₹8.7b invested in the business, at the current share price. That's nothing to sneeze at!

While it's always good to see some strong conviction in the company from insiders through heavy investment, it's also important for shareholders to ask if management compensation policies are reasonable. Our quick analysis into CEO remuneration would seem to indicate they are. The median total compensation for CEOs of companies similar in size to Sky Gold, with market caps between ₹8.3b and ₹33b, is around ₹16m.

The Sky Gold CEO received total compensation of only ₹2.7m in the year to March 2023. You could consider this pay as somewhat symbolic, which suggests the CEO does not need a lot of compensation to stay motivated. CEO remuneration levels are not the most important metric for investors, but when the pay is modest, that does support enhanced alignment between the CEO and the ordinary shareholders. It can also be a sign of a culture of integrity, in a broader sense.

Does Sky Gold Deserve A Spot On Your Watchlist?

You can't deny that Sky Gold has grown its earnings per share at a very impressive rate. That's attractive. If you still have your doubts, remember too that company insiders have a considerable investment aligning themselves with the shareholders and CEO pay is quite modest compared to similarly sized companiess. This may only be a fast rundown, but the key takeaway is that Sky Gold is worth keeping an eye on. Before you take the next step you should know about the 2 warning signs for Sky Gold (1 can't be ignored!) that we have uncovered.

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 Indian companies which have demonstrated growth backed by recent insider purchases.

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.