With EPS Growth And More, Grodno Spólka Akcyjna (WSE:GRN) Is Interesting

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 completely lacks a track record of revenue and profit. But as Warren Buffett has mused, 'If you've been playing poker for half an hour and you still don't know who the patsy is, you're the patsy.' When they buy such story stocks, investors are all too often the patsy.

If, on the other hand, you like companies that have revenue, and even earn profits, then you may well be interested in Grodno Spólka Akcyjna (WSE:GRN). While that doesn't make the shares worth buying at any price, you can't deny that successful capitalism requires profit, eventually. In comparison, loss making companies act like a sponge for capital - but unlike such a sponge they do not always produce something when squeezed.

See our latest analysis for Grodno Spólka Akcyjna

How Fast Is Grodno Spólka Akcyjna Growing?

The market is a voting machine in the short term, but a weighing machine in the long term, so share price follows earnings per share (EPS) eventually. That means EPS growth is considered a real positive by most successful long-term investors. Impressively, Grodno Spólka Akcyjna has grown EPS by 18% per year, compound, in the last three years. As a general rule, we'd say that if a company can keep up that sort of growth, shareholders will be smiling.

I like to see top-line growth as an indication that growth is sustainable, and I look for a high earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margin to point to a competitive moat (though some companies with low margins also have moats). Grodno Spólka Akcyjna maintained stable EBIT margins over the last year, all while growing revenue 19% to zł691m. That's a real positive.

You can take a look at the company's revenue and earnings growth trend, in the chart below. For finer detail, click on the image.

Grodno Spólka Akcyjna isn't a huge company, given its market capitalization of zł204m. That makes it extra important to check on its balance sheet strength.

Are Grodno Spólka Akcyjna Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

Personally, I like to see high insider ownership of a company, since it suggests that it will be managed in the interests of shareholders. So as you can imagine, the fact that Grodno Spólka Akcyjna insiders own a significant number of shares certainly appeals to me. In fact, they own 73% of the company, so they will share in the same delights and challenges experienced by the ordinary shareholders. This makes me think they will be incentivised to plan for the long term - something I like to see. In terms of absolute value, insiders have zł149m invested in the business, using the current share price. That's nothing to sneeze at!

It means a lot to see insiders invested in the business, but I find myself wondering if remuneration policies are shareholder friendly. A brief analysis of the CEO compensation suggests they are. I discovered that the median total compensation for the CEOs of companies like Grodno Spólka Akcyjna with market caps under zł748m is about zł554k.

The Grodno Spólka Akcyjna CEO received total compensation of only zł40k in the year to . This could be considered a token amount, and indicates that the company does not need to use payment to motivate the CEO - that is often a good sign. CEO compensation is hardly the most important aspect of a company to consider, but when its reasonable that does give me a little more confidence that leadership are looking out for shareholder interests. I'd also argue reasonable pay levels attest to good decision making more generally.

Is Grodno Spólka Akcyjna Worth Keeping An Eye On?

Given my belief that share price follows earnings per share you can easily imagine how I feel about Grodno Spólka Akcyjna's strong EPS growth. If that's not enough, consider also that the CEO pay is quite reasonable, and insiders are well-invested alongside other shareholders. This may only be a fast rundown, but the takeaway for me is that Grodno Spólka Akcyjna is worth keeping an eye on. We don't want to rain on the parade too much, but we did also find 4 warning signs for Grodno Spólka Akcyjna (1 shouldn't be ignored!) that you need to be mindful of.

You can invest in any company you want. But if you prefer to focus on stocks that have demonstrated insider buying, here is a list of companies with insider buying in the last three months.

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. 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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