Advertisement
Australia markets closed
  • ALL ORDS

    8,022.70
    +28.50 (+0.36%)
     
  • ASX 200

    7,749.00
    +27.40 (+0.35%)
     
  • AUD/USD

    0.6604
    -0.0017 (-0.26%)
     
  • OIL

    78.50
    -0.76 (-0.96%)
     
  • GOLD

    2,375.90
    +35.60 (+1.52%)
     
  • Bitcoin AUD

    91,683.78
    -2,221.52 (-2.37%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    1,250.92
    -107.09 (-7.88%)
     
  • AUD/EUR

    0.6129
    -0.0009 (-0.14%)
     
  • AUD/NZD

    1.0973
    +0.0005 (+0.04%)
     
  • NZX 50

    11,755.17
    +8.59 (+0.07%)
     
  • NASDAQ

    18,138.14
    +24.68 (+0.14%)
     
  • FTSE

    8,433.76
    +52.41 (+0.63%)
     
  • Dow Jones

    39,456.76
    +69.00 (+0.18%)
     
  • DAX

    18,772.85
    +86.25 (+0.46%)
     
  • Hang Seng

    18,963.68
    +425.87 (+2.30%)
     
  • NIKKEI 225

    38,229.11
    +155.13 (+0.41%)
     

Does Denbury (NYSE:DEN) Deserve A Spot On Your Watchlist?

It's common for many investors, especially those who are inexperienced, to buy shares in companies with a good story even if these companies are loss-making. Sometimes these stories can cloud the minds of investors, leading them to invest with their emotions rather than on the merit of good company fundamentals. 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 Denbury (NYSE:DEN), which has not only revenues, but also profits. Even if this company is fairly valued by the market, investors would agree that generating consistent profits will continue to provide Denbury with the means to add long-term value to shareholders.

See our latest analysis for Denbury

How Fast Is Denbury Growing Its Earnings Per Share?

Investors and investment funds chase profits, and that means share prices tend rise with positive earnings per share (EPS) outcomes. Which is why EPS growth is looked upon so favourably. It's an outstanding feat for Denbury to have grown EPS from US$1.10 to US$9.63 in just one year. Even though that growth rate may not be repeated, that looks like a breakout improvement. Could this be a sign that the business has reached an inflection point?

ADVERTISEMENT

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 Denbury is growing revenues, and EBIT margins improved by 27.8 percentage points to 33%, over the last year. 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. Click on the chart to see the exact numbers.

earnings-and-revenue-history
earnings-and-revenue-history

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 Denbury.

Are Denbury Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

It should give investors a sense of security owning shares in a company if insiders also own shares, creating a close alignment their interests. Shareholders will be pleased by the fact that insiders own Denbury shares worth a considerable sum. Holding US$95m worth of stock in the company is no laughing matter and insiders will be committed in delivering the best outcomes for shareholders. This should keep them focused on creating long term value for shareholders.

It's good to see that insiders are invested in the company, but are remuneration levels reasonable? Well, based on the CEO pay, you'd argue that they are indeed. The median total compensation for CEOs of companies similar in size to Denbury, with market caps between US$2.0b and US$6.4b, is around US$6.5m.

Denbury's CEO took home a total compensation package of US$2.3m in the year prior to December 2021. That looks like a modest pay packet, and may hint at a certain respect for the interests of shareholders. CEO compensation is hardly the most important aspect of a company to consider, but when it's reasonable, that gives a little more confidence that leadership are looking out for shareholder interests. It can also be a sign of a culture of integrity, in a broader sense.

Does Denbury Deserve A Spot On Your Watchlist?

Denbury's earnings have taken off in quite an impressive fashion. An added bonus for those interested is that management hold a heap of stock and the CEO pay is quite reasonable, illustrating good cash management. The strong EPS improvement suggests the businesses is humming along. Denbury is certainly doing some things right and is well worth investigating. Even so, be aware that Denbury is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis , you should know about...

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.

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.

Join A Paid User Research Session
You’ll receive a US$30 Amazon Gift card for 1 hour of your time while helping us build better investing tools for the individual investors like yourself. Sign up here