The Zalaris (OB:ZAL) Share Price Is Up 89% And Shareholders Are Holding On

Stock pickers are generally looking for stocks that will outperform the broader market. And in our experience, buying the right stocks can give your wealth a significant boost. For example, the Zalaris ASA (OB:ZAL) share price is up 89% in the last 5 years, clearly besting the market return of around 42% (ignoring dividends). On the other hand, the more recent gains haven't been so impressive, with shareholders gaining just 70%.

Check out our latest analysis for Zalaris

Because Zalaris made a loss in the last twelve months, we think the market is probably more focussed on revenue and revenue growth, at least for now. Generally speaking, companies without profits are expected to grow revenue every year, and at a good clip. Some companies are willing to postpone profitability to grow revenue faster, but in that case one does expect good top-line growth.

In the last 5 years Zalaris saw its revenue grow at 17% per year. Even measured against other revenue-focussed companies, that's a good result. While the compound gain of 14% per year is good, it's not unreasonable given the strong revenue growth. If the strong revenue growth continues, we'd expect the share price to follow, in time. Opportunity lies where the market hasn't fully priced growth in the underlying business.

The image below shows how earnings and revenue have tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

It's good to see that there was some significant insider buying in the last three months. That's a positive. That said, we think earnings and revenue growth trends are even more important factors to consider. It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on Zalaris' earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What about the Total Shareholder Return (TSR)?

We've already covered Zalaris' share price action, but we should also mention its total shareholder return (TSR). The TSR attempts to capture the value of dividends (as if they were reinvested) as well as any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings offered to shareholders. Zalaris' TSR of 101% for the 5 years exceeded its share price return, because it has paid dividends.

A Different Perspective

We're pleased to report that Zalaris shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 70% over one year. Since the one-year TSR is better than the five-year TSR (the latter coming in at 15% per year), it would seem that the stock's performance has improved in recent times. Someone with an optimistic perspective could view the recent improvement in TSR as indicating that the business itself is getting better with time. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Like risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Zalaris (of which 2 make us uncomfortable!) you should know about.

If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on NO exchanges.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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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