The total return for Travelzoo (NASDAQ:TZOO) investors has risen faster than earnings growth over the last year

It's been a soft week for Travelzoo (NASDAQ:TZOO) shares, which are down 11%. Despite this, the stock is a strong performer over the last year, no doubt about that. We're very pleased to report the share price shot up 115% in that time. So it is important to view the recent reduction in price through that lense. The real question is whether the business is trending in the right direction.

While this past week has detracted from the company's one-year return, let's look at the recent trends of the underlying business and see if the gains have been in alignment.

View our latest analysis for Travelzoo

While the efficient markets hypothesis continues to be taught by some, it has been proven that markets are over-reactive dynamic systems, and investors are not always rational. One flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price.

Travelzoo was able to grow EPS by 35% in the last twelve months. The share price gain of 115% certainly outpaced the EPS growth. This indicates that the market is now more optimistic about the stock.

The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).

It's probably worth noting that the CEO is paid less than the median at similar sized companies. It's always worth keeping an eye on CEO pay, but a more important question is whether the company will grow earnings throughout the years. It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on Travelzoo's earnings, revenue and cash flow.

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that Travelzoo shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 115% over the last year. That gain is better than the annual TSR over five years, which is 4%. Therefore it seems like sentiment around the company has been positive lately. In the best case scenario, this may hint at some real business momentum, implying that now could be a great time to delve deeper. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Take risks, for example - Travelzoo has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.

Of course Travelzoo may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of growth stocks.

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.