We think all investors should try to buy and hold high quality multi-year winners. And we've seen some truly amazing gains over the years. For example, the Eton Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETON) share price is up a whopping 421% in the last half decade, a handsome return for long term holders. This just goes to show the value creation that some businesses can achieve. On top of that, the share price is up 23% in about a quarter.

Since it's been a strong week for Eton Pharmaceuticals shareholders, let's have a look at trend of the longer term fundamentals.

See our latest analysis for Eton Pharmaceuticals

Eton Pharmaceuticals wasn't profitable in the last twelve months, it is unlikely we'll see a strong correlation between its share price and its earnings per share (EPS). Arguably revenue is our next best option. Generally speaking, companies without profits are expected to grow revenue every year, and at a good clip. As you can imagine, fast revenue growth, when maintained, often leads to fast profit growth.

In the last 5 years Eton Pharmaceuticals saw its revenue grow at 47% per year. That's well above most pre-profit companies. Fortunately, the market has not missed this, and has pushed the share price up by 39% per year in that time. It's never too late to start following a top notch stock like Eton Pharmaceuticals, since some long term winners go on winning for decades. On the face of it, this looks lke a good opportunity, although we note sentiment seems very positive already.

You can see how earnings and revenue have changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).

Take a more thorough look at Eton Pharmaceuticals' financial health with this free report on its balance sheet.

A Different Perspective

We're pleased to report that Eton Pharmaceuticals shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 348% over one year. That gain is better than the annual TSR over five years, which is 39%. Therefore it seems like sentiment around the company has been positive lately. 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. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Eton Pharmaceuticals .

For those who like to find winning investments this free list of undervalued companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

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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