Yahoo Finance Here's Why We Think Teledyne Technologies (NYSE:TDY) Is Well Worth Watching
For beginners, it can seem like a good idea (and an exciting prospect) to buy a company that tells a good story to investors, even if it completely lacks a track record of revenue and profit. But as Warren Buffett has mused, 'If you've been playing poker for half an hour and you still don't know who the patsy is, you're the patsy.' When they buy such story stocks, investors are all too often the patsy.
So if you're like me, you might be more interested in profitable, growing companies, like Teledyne Technologies (NYSE:TDY). While that doesn't make the shares worth buying at any price, you can't deny that successful capitalism requires profit, eventually. Conversely, a loss-making company is yet to prove itself with profit, and eventually the sweet milk of external capital may run sour.
See our latest analysis for Teledyne Technologies
Teledyne Technologies's Earnings Per Share Are Growing.
The market is a voting machine in the short term, but a weighing machine in the long term, so share price follows earnings per share (EPS) eventually. Therefore, there are plenty of investors who like to buy shares in companies that are growing EPS. We can see that in the last three years Teledyne Technologies grew its EPS by 8.6% per year. That's a good rate of growth, if it can be sustained.
Careful consideration of revenue growth and earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margins can help inform a view on the sustainability of the recent profit growth. While Teledyne Technologies did well to grow revenue over the last year, EBIT margins were dampened at the same time. So it seems the future my hold further growth, especially if EBIT margins can stabilize.
In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings, and revenue, over time. To see the actual numbers, click on the chart.
The trick, as an investor, is to find companies that are going to perform well in the future, not just in the past. To that end, right now and today, you can check our visualization of consensus analyst forecasts for future Teledyne Technologies EPS 100% free.
Are Teledyne Technologies Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?
Like the kids in the streets standing up for their beliefs, insider share purchases give me reason to believe in a brighter future. Because oftentimes, the purchase of stock is a sign that the buyer views it as undervalued. Of course, we can never be sure what insiders are thinking, we can only judge their actions.
The first bit of good news is that no Teledyne Technologies insiders reported share sales in the last twelve months. Even better, though, is that the Vice Chairman, Jason VanWees, bought a whopping US$639k worth of shares, paying about US$426 per share, on average. Big buys like that give me a sense of opportunity; actions speak louder than words.
Along with the insider buying, another encouraging sign for Teledyne Technologies is that insiders, as a group, have a considerable shareholding. Notably, they have an enormous stake in the company, worth US$246m. I would find that kind of skin in the game quite encouraging, if I owned shares, since it would ensure that the leaders of the company would also experience my success, or failure, with the stock.
While insiders are apparently happy to hold and accumulate shares, that is just part of the pretty picture. That's because on our analysis the CEO, Robert Mehrabian, is paid less than the median for similar sized companies. For companies with market capitalizations over US$8.0b, like Teledyne Technologies, the median CEO pay is around US$13m.
The Teledyne Technologies CEO received total compensation of just US$6.6m in the year to . That looks like modest pay to me, and may hint at a certain respect for the interests of shareholders. 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 good governance, more generally.
Is Teledyne Technologies Worth Keeping An Eye On?
One important encouraging feature of Teledyne Technologies is that it is growing profits. On top of that, we've seen insiders buying shares even though they already own plenty. To me, that all makes it well worth a spot on your watchlist, as well as continuing research. Don't forget that there may still be risks. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for Teledyne Technologies (1 is a bit unpleasant) you should be aware of.
As a growth investor I do like to see insider buying. But Teledyne Technologies isn't the only one. You can see a a free list of them here.
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.
