Is Now The Time To Put Wesdome Gold Mines (TSE:WDO) On Your Watchlist?
Some have more dollars than sense, they say, so even companies that have no revenue, no profit, and a record of falling short, can easily find investors. 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 Wesdome Gold Mines (TSE:WDO). While that doesn't make the shares worth buying at any price, you can't deny that successful capitalism requires profit, eventually. While a well funded company may sustain losses for years, unless its owners have an endless appetite for subsidizing the customer, it will need to generate a profit eventually, or else breathe its last breath.
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View our latest analysis for Wesdome Gold Mines
How Fast Is Wesdome Gold Mines Growing Its Earnings Per Share?
In business, though not in life, profits are a key measure of success; and share prices tend to reflect earnings per share (EPS). So like a ray of sunshine through a gap in the clouds, improving EPS is considered a good sign. You can imagine, then, that it almost knocked my socks off when I realized that Wesdome Gold Mines grew its EPS from CA$0.026 to CA$0.15, in one short year. Even though that growth rate is unlikely to be repeated, that looks like a breakout improvement.
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. The good news is that Wesdome Gold Mines is growing revenues, and EBIT margins improved by 7 percentage points to 23%, over the last year. Ticking those two boxes is a good sign of growth, in my book.
In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings, and revenue, over time. To see the actual numbers, click on the chart.
Of course the knack is to find stocks that have their best days in the future, not in the past. You could base your opinion on past performance, of course, but you may also want to check this interactive graph of professional analyst EPS forecasts for Wesdome Gold Mines.
Are Wesdome Gold Mines Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?
Like the kids in the streets standing up for their beliefs, insider share purchases give me reason to believe in a brighter future. Because oftentimes, the purchase of stock is a sign that the buyer views it as undervalued. However, small purchases are not always indicative of conviction, and insiders don't always get it right.
Any way you look at it Wesdome Gold Mines shareholders can gain quiet confidence from the fact that insiders shelled out CA$444k to buy stock, over the last year. When you contrast that with the complete lack of sales, it's easy for shareholders to brim with joyful expectancy. Zooming in, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by President Duncan Middlemiss for CA$121k worth of shares, at about CA$2.30 per share.
Is Wesdome Gold Mines Worth Keeping An Eye On?
Wesdome Gold Mines's earnings per share growth has been so hot recently that thinking about it is making me blush. If you're like me, you'll find it hard to ignore that sort of explosive EPS growth. And indeed, it could be a sign that the business is at an inflection point. If that's the case, you may regret neglecting to put Wesdome Gold Mines on your watchlist. While we've looked at the quality of the earnings, we haven't yet done any work to value the stock. So if you like to buy cheap, you may want to check if Wesdome Gold Mines is trading on a high P/E or a low P/E, relative to its industry.
As a growth investor I do like to see insider buying. But Wesdome Gold Mines isn't the only one. You can see a a free list of them here.
Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction
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If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
