Those who invested in LeMaitre Vascular (NASDAQ:LMAT) five years ago are up 257%

While LeMaitre Vascular, Inc. (NASDAQ:LMAT) shareholders are probably generally happy, the stock hasn't had particularly good run recently, with the share price falling 16% in the last quarter. But that doesn't change the fact that the returns over the last five years have been very strong. In fact, the share price is 240% higher today. So while it's never fun to see a share price fall, it's important to look at a longer time horizon. Of course, that doesn't necessarily mean it's cheap now.

So let's assess the underlying fundamentals over the last 5 years and see if they've moved in lock-step with shareholder returns.

Our free stock report includes 1 warning sign investors should be aware of before investing in LeMaitre Vascular. Read for free now.

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement.

During five years of share price growth, LeMaitre Vascular achieved compound earnings per share (EPS) growth of 18% per year. This EPS growth is lower than the 28% average annual increase in the share price. This suggests that market participants hold the company in higher regard, these days. That's not necessarily surprising considering the five-year track record of earnings growth.

You can see how EPS has changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).

We're pleased to report that the CEO is remunerated more modestly than most CEOs at similarly capitalized companies. But while CEO remuneration is always worth checking, the really important question is whether the company can grow earnings going forward. This free interactive report on LeMaitre Vascular's earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

What About Dividends?

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. We note that for LeMaitre Vascular the TSR over the last 5 years was 257%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. This is largely a result of its dividend payments!

A Different Perspective

LeMaitre Vascular provided a TSR of 7.7% over the last twelve months. Unfortunately this falls short of the market return. If we look back over five years, the returns are even better, coming in at 29% per year for five years. It may well be that this is a business worth popping on the watching, given the continuing positive reception, over time, from the market. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand LeMaitre Vascular better, we need to consider many other factors. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for LeMaitre Vascular you should be aware of.

We will like LeMaitre Vascular better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of undervalued stocks (mostly small caps) with considerable, recent, insider buying.

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

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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.