If You Had Bought Health Catalyst (NASDAQ:HCAT) Shares A Year Ago You'd Have Earned19% Returns

If you want to compound wealth in the stock market, you can do so by buying an index fund. But one can do better than that by picking better than average stocks (as part of a diversified portfolio). For example, the Health Catalyst, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCAT) share price is up 19% in the last year, clearly besting the market return of around 14% (not including dividends). So that should have shareholders smiling. Note that businesses generally develop over the long term, so the returns over the last year might not reflect a long term trend.

Check out our latest analysis for Health Catalyst

Because Health Catalyst made a loss in the last twelve months, we think the market is probably more focussed on revenue and revenue growth, at least for now. When a company doesn't make profits, we'd generally expect to see good revenue growth. Some companies are willing to postpone profitability to grow revenue faster, but in that case one does expect good top-line growth.

Over the last twelve months, Health Catalyst's revenue grew by 21%. We respect that sort of growth, no doubt. While the share price performed well, gaining 19% over twelve months, you could argue the revenue growth warranted it. If revenue stays on trend, there may be plenty more share price gains to come. But before deciding this growth stock is underappreciated, you might want to check out profitability trends (and cash flow)

The graphic below depicts how earnings and revenue have changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

Health Catalyst is a well known stock, with plenty of analyst coverage, suggesting some visibility into future growth. If you are thinking of buying or selling Health Catalyst stock, you should check out this free report showing analyst consensus estimates for future profits.

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that Health Catalyst shareholders have gained 19% over the last year. A substantial portion of that gain has come in the last three months, with the stock up 31% in that time. This suggests the company is continuing to win over new investors. 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. Even so, be aware that Health Catalyst is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis , 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 US exchanges.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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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