Yahoo Finance Should You Be Adding Horizon Oil (ASX:HZN) To Your Watchlist Today?
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 currently lacks a track record of revenue and profit. But the reality is that when a company loses money each year, for long enough, its investors will usually take their share of those losses. While a well funded company may sustain losses for years, it will need to generate a profit eventually, or else investors will move on and the company will wither away.
In contrast to all that, many investors prefer to focus on companies like Horizon Oil (ASX:HZN), which has not only revenues, but also profits. While profit isn't the sole metric that should be considered when investing, it's worth recognising businesses that can consistently produce it.
Check out our latest analysis for Horizon Oil
How Fast Is Horizon Oil Growing?
If you believe that markets are even vaguely efficient, then over the long term you'd expect a company's share price to follow its earnings per share (EPS) outcomes. That means EPS growth is considered a real positive by most successful long-term investors. We can see that in the last three years Horizon Oil grew its EPS by 7.0% per year. That might not be particularly high growth, but it does show that per-share earnings are moving steadily in the right direction.
One way to double-check a company's growth is to look at how its revenue, and earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) margins are changing. The music to the ears of Horizon Oil shareholders is that EBIT margins have grown from 31% to 35% in the last 12 months and revenues are on an upwards trend as well. Ticking those two boxes is a good sign of growth, in our book.
The chart below shows how the company's bottom and top lines have progressed over time. To see the actual numbers, click on the chart.
Horizon Oil isn't a huge company, given its market capitalisation of AU$256m. That makes it extra important to check on its balance sheet strength.
Are Horizon Oil Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?
As a general rule, it's worth considering how much the CEO is paid, since unreasonably high rates could be considered against the interests of shareholders. Our analysis has discovered that the median total compensation for the CEOs of companies like Horizon Oil with market caps between US$100m and US$400m is about US$551k.
Horizon Oil offered total compensation worth US$491k to its CEO in the year to June 2022. That seems pretty reasonable, especially given it's below the median for similar sized companies. While the level of CEO compensation shouldn't be the biggest factor in how the company is viewed, modest remuneration is a positive, because it suggests that the board keeps shareholder interests in mind. Generally, arguments can be made that reasonable pay levels attest to good decision-making.
Is Horizon Oil Worth Keeping An Eye On?
One positive for Horizon Oil is that it is growing EPS. That's nice to see. To add to this, the modest CEO compensation should tell investors that the directors have an active interest in delivering the best for shareholders. So all in all Horizon Oil is worthy at least considering for your watchlist. Still, you should learn about the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Horizon Oil.
There's always the possibility of doing well buying stocks that are not growing earnings and do not have insiders buying shares. But for those who consider these important metrics, we encourage you to check out companies that do have those features. You can access 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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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.
