Investors might be losing patience for Semtech's (NASDAQ:SMTC) increasing losses, as stock sheds 26% over the past week

The Semtech Corporation (NASDAQ:SMTC) share price has had a bad week, falling 26%. But that doesn't detract from the splendid returns of the last year. Indeed, the share price is up an impressive 176% in that time. So it is important to view the recent reduction in price through that lense. More important, going forward, is how the business itself is going.

While this past week has detracted from the company's one-year return, let's look at the recent trends of the underlying business and see if the gains have been in alignment.

Check out our latest analysis for Semtech

Semtech isn't currently profitable, so most analysts would look to revenue growth to get an idea of how fast the underlying business is growing. When a company doesn't make profits, we'd generally hope to see good revenue growth. That's because fast revenue growth can be easily extrapolated to forecast profits, often of considerable size.

In the last year Semtech saw its revenue grow by 1.0%. That's not great considering the company is losing money. So we wouldn't have expected the share price to rise by 176%. We're happy that investors have made money, though we wonder if the increase will be sustained. It's quite likely that the market is considering other factors, not just revenue growth.

The graphic below depicts how earnings and revenue have changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

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. You can see what analysts are predicting for Semtech in this interactive graph of future profit estimates.

A Different Perspective

It's good to see that Semtech has rewarded shareholders with a total shareholder return of 176% in the last twelve months. That gain is better than the annual TSR over five years, which is 2%. Therefore it seems like sentiment around the company has been positive lately. Given the share price momentum remains strong, it might be worth taking a closer look at the stock, lest you miss an opportunity. 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. Even so, be aware that Semtech is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those doesn't sit too well with us...

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of undervalued small caps that insiders are buying.

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

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.