Unfortunately, investing is risky - companies can and do go bankrupt. But when you pick a company that is really flourishing, you can make more than 100%. For example, the Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AQST) share price had more than doubled in just one year - up 289%. On top of that, the share price is up 43% in about a quarter. However, the longer term returns haven't been so impressive, with the stock up just 8.5% in the last three years.

After a strong gain in the past week, it's worth seeing if longer term returns have been driven by improving fundamentals.

Given that Aquestive Therapeutics didn't make a profit in the last twelve months, we'll focus on revenue growth to form a quick view of its business development. Generally speaking, companies without profits are expected to grow revenue every year, and at a good clip. Some companies are willing to postpone profitability to grow revenue faster, but in that case one would hope for good top-line growth to make up for the lack of earnings.

Over the last twelve months, Aquestive Therapeutics' revenue grew by 25%. That's a fairly respectable growth rate. While that revenue growth is pretty good the share price performance outshone it, with a lift of 289% as mentioned above. If the profitability is on the horizon then now could be a very exciting time to be a shareholder. But investors need to be wary of how the 'fear of missing out' could influence them to buy without doing thorough research.

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

You can see how its balance sheet has strengthened (or weakened) over time in this free interactive graphic.

A Different Perspective

It's good to see that Aquestive Therapeutics has rewarded shareholders with a total shareholder return of 289% in the last twelve months. That's better than the annualised return of 7% over half a decade, implying that the company is doing better recently. In the best case scenario, this may hint at some real business momentum, implying that now could be a great time to delve deeper. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. Case in point: We've spotted 4 warning signs for Aquestive Therapeutics you should be aware of, and 1 of them is a bit unpleasant.

We will like Aquestive Therapeutics better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of undervalued stocks (mostly small caps) with considerable, recent, insider buying.

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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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.