The excitement of investing in a company that can reverse its fortunes is a big draw for some speculators, so even companies that have no revenue, no profit, and a record of falling short, can manage to find investors. But as Peter Lynch said in One Up On Wall Street, 'Long shots almost never pay off.' Loss making companies can act like a sponge for capital - so investors should be cautious that they're not throwing good money after bad.

Despite being in the age of tech-stock blue-sky investing, many investors still adopt a more traditional strategy; buying shares in profitable companies like Unitil (NYSE:UTL). Now this is not to say that the company presents the best investment opportunity around, but profitability is a key component to success in business.

Check out our latest analysis for Unitil

How Fast Is Unitil Growing?

Generally, companies experiencing growth in earnings per share (EPS) should see similar trends in share price. That makes EPS growth an attractive quality for any company. Over the last three years, Unitil has grown EPS by 8.1% per year. That's a good rate of growth, if it can be sustained.

It's often helpful to take a look at earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) margins, as well as revenue growth, to get another take on the quality of the company's growth. Unitil's EBIT margins have actually improved by 4.3 percentage points in the last year, to reach 19%, but, on the flip side, revenue was down 15%. That falls short of ideal.

In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings and revenue, over time. Click on the chart to see the exact numbers.

The trick, as an investor, is to find companies that are going to perform well in the future, not just in the past. While crystal balls don't exist, you can check our visualization of consensus analyst forecasts for Unitil's future EPS 100% free.

Are Unitil Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

It's pleasing to see company leaders with putting their money on the line, so to speak, because it increases alignment of incentives between the people running the business, and its true owners. So it is good to see that Unitil insiders have a significant amount of capital invested in the stock. To be specific, they have US$22m worth of shares. That shows significant buy-in, and may indicate conviction in the business strategy. Despite being just 2.2% of the company, the value of that investment is enough to show insiders have plenty riding on the venture.

It means a lot to see insiders invested in the business, but shareholders may be wondering if remuneration policies are in their best interest. Well, based on the CEO pay, you'd argue that they are indeed. For companies with market capitalisations between US$400m and US$1.6b, like Unitil, the median CEO pay is around US$3.3m.

Unitil offered total compensation worth US$2.6m to its CEO in the year to December 2023. That is actually below the median for CEO's of similarly sized companies. 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 good governance, more generally.

Should You Add Unitil To Your Watchlist?

As previously touched on, Unitil is a growing business, which is encouraging. Earnings growth might be the main attraction for Unitil, but the fun does not stop there. Boasting both modest CEO pay and considerable insider ownership, you'd argue this one is worthy of the watchlist, at least. We don't want to rain on the parade too much, but we did also find 2 warning signs for Unitil (1 is a bit concerning!) that you need to be mindful of.

Although Unitil certainly looks good, it may appeal to more investors if insiders were buying up shares. If you like to see companies with more skin in the game, then check out this handpicked selection of companies that not only boast of strong growth but have strong insider backing.

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.