If You Had Bought GW Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:GWPH) Stock Five Years Ago, You Could Pocket A 171% Gain Today

The most you can lose on any stock (assuming you don't use leverage) is 100% of your money. But when you pick a company that is really flourishing, you can make more than 100%. For instance, the price of GW Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ:GWPH) stock is up an impressive 171% over the last five years. On top of that, the share price is up 19% in about a quarter. This could be related to the recent financial results, released recently - you can catch up on the most recent data by reading our company report.

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Check out our latest analysis for GW Pharmaceuticals

GW Pharmaceuticals isn't currently profitable, so most analysts would look to revenue growth to get an idea of how fast the underlying business is growing. When a company doesn't make profits, we'd generally expect to see good revenue growth. That's because it's hard to be confident a company will be sustainable if revenue growth is negligible, and it never makes a profit.

Over the last half decade GW Pharmaceuticals's revenue has actually been trending down at about 20% per year. On the other hand, the share price done the opposite, gaining 22%, compound, each year. It just goes to show tht the market is forward looking, and it's not always easy to predict the future based on past trends. Still, we are a bit cautious in this kind of situation.

The graphic below shows how revenue and earnings have changed as management guided the business forward. If you want to see cashflow, you can click on the chart.

We're pleased to report that the CEO is remunerated more modestly than most CEOs at similarly capitalized companies. But while CEO remuneration is always worth checking, the really important question is whether the company can grow earnings going forward. This free report showing analyst forecasts should help you form a view on GW Pharmaceuticals

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that GW Pharmaceuticals shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 19% over the last year. However, the TSR over five years, coming in at 22% per year, is even more impressive. Shareholders might want to examine this detailed historical graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

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

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at [email protected]. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.