SPX Technologies (NYSE:SPXC) investors are up 3.4% in the past week, but earnings have declined over the last five years
The worst result, after buying shares in a company (assuming no leverage), would be if you lose all the money you put in. But when you pick a company that is really flourishing, you can make more than 100%. One great example is SPX Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:SPXC) which saw its share price drive 130% higher over five years. Also pleasing for shareholders was the 32% gain in the last three months. But this could be related to the strong market, which is up 13% in the last three months.
After a strong gain in the past week, it's worth seeing if longer term returns have been driven by improving fundamentals.
View our latest analysis for SPX Technologies
While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. One flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price.
During five years of share price growth, SPX Technologies actually saw its EPS drop 13% per year.
Essentially, it doesn't seem likely that investors are focused on EPS. Because earnings per share don't seem to match up with the share price, we'll take a look at other metrics instead.
It is not great to see that revenue has dropped by 2.4% per year over five years. It certainly surprises us that the share price is up, but perhaps a closer examination of the data will yield answers.
You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).
This free interactive report on SPX Technologies' balance sheet strength is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.
A Different Perspective
It's nice to see that SPX Technologies shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 43% over the last year. That's better than the annualised return of 18% over half a decade, implying that the company is doing better recently. In the best case scenario, this may hint at some real business momentum, implying that now could be a great time to delve deeper. 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. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for SPX Technologies you should know about.
If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of companies that have proven they can grow earnings.
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.
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