The most you can lose on any stock (assuming you don't use leverage) is 100% of your money. But on the bright side, if you buy shares in a high quality company at the right price, you can gain well over 100%. Long term Manhattan Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ:MANH) shareholders would be well aware of this, since the stock is up 207% in five years. It's also up 18% in about a month. We note that Manhattan Associates reported its financial results recently; luckily, you can catch up on the latest revenue and profit numbers in our company report.

So let's assess the underlying fundamentals over the last 5 years and see if they've moved in lock-step with shareholder returns.

While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.

Over half a decade, Manhattan Associates managed to grow its earnings per share at 18% a year. This EPS growth is lower than the 25% average annual increase in the share price. This suggests that market participants hold the company in higher regard, these days. And that's hardly shocking given the track record of growth. This favorable sentiment is reflected in its (fairly optimistic) P/E ratio of 76.99.

The image below shows how EPS has tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

We know that Manhattan Associates has improved its bottom line lately, but is it going to grow revenue? This free report showing analyst revenue forecasts should help you figure out if the EPS growth can be sustained.

A Different Perspective

It's good to see that Manhattan Associates has rewarded shareholders with a total shareholder return of 35% in the last twelve months. That's better than the annualised return of 25% over half a decade, implying that the company is doing better recently. Someone with an optimistic perspective could view the recent improvement in TSR as indicating that the business itself is getting better with time. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Manhattan Associates better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Manhattan Associates you should know about.

If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: many of them are unnoticed AND have attractive valuation).

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on American exchanges.

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.