Yahoo Finance Here's Why We Think Miller Industries (NYSE:MLR) Might Deserve Your Attention Today
Investors are often guided by the idea of discovering 'the next big thing', even if that means buying 'story stocks' without any revenue, let alone profit. 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. A loss-making company is yet to prove itself with profit, and eventually the inflow of external capital may dry up.
If this kind of company isn't your style, you like companies that generate revenue, and even earn profits, then you may well be interested in Miller Industries (NYSE:MLR). 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 Miller Industries
How Quickly Is Miller Industries Increasing Earnings Per Share?
Generally, companies experiencing growth in earnings per share (EPS) should see similar trends in share price. That means EPS growth is considered a real positive by most successful long-term investors. Impressively, Miller Industries has grown EPS by 34% per year, compound, in the last three years. As a general rule, we'd say that if a company can keep up that sort of growth, shareholders will be beaming.
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 good news is that Miller Industries is growing revenues, and EBIT margins improved by 3.0 percentage points to 7.3%, over the last year. That's great to see, on both counts.
The chart below shows how the company's bottom and top lines have progressed over time. For finer detail, click on the image.
While profitability drives the upside, prudent investors always check the balance sheet, too.
Are Miller Industries 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. Miller Industries followers will find comfort in knowing that insiders have a significant amount of capital that aligns their best interests with the wider shareholder group. To be specific, they have US$28m worth of shares. That's a lot of money, and no small incentive to work hard. While their ownership only accounts for 4.2%, this is still a considerable amount at stake to encourage the business to maintain a strategy that will deliver value to shareholders.
While it's always good to see some strong conviction in the company from insiders through heavy investment, it's also important for shareholders to ask if management compensation policies are reasonable. Our quick analysis into CEO remuneration would seem to indicate they are. Our analysis has discovered that the median total compensation for the CEOs of companies like Miller Industries with market caps between US$400m and US$1.6b is about US$3.4m.
Miller Industries offered total compensation worth US$3.1m to its CEO in the year to December 2023. That seems pretty reasonable, especially given it's below the median for similar sized companies. CEO remuneration levels are not the most important metric for investors, but when the pay is modest, that does support enhanced alignment between the CEO and the ordinary shareholders. It can also be a sign of a culture of integrity, in a broader sense.
Is Miller Industries Worth Keeping An Eye On?
If you believe that share price follows earnings per share you should definitely be delving further into Miller Industries' strong EPS growth. If you still have your doubts, remember too that company insiders have a considerable investment aligning themselves with the shareholders and CEO pay is quite modest compared to similarly sized companiess. The overarching message here is that Miller Industries has underlying strengths that make it worth a look at. Once you've identified a business you like, the next step is to consider what you think it's worth. And right now is your chance to view our exclusive discounted cashflow valuation of Miller Industries. You might benefit from giving it a glance today.
While opting for stocks without growing earnings and absent insider buying can yield results, for investors valuing these key metrics, here is a carefully selected list of companies in the US with promising growth potential and insider confidence.
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.
