Installed Building Products' (NYSE:IBP) five-year earnings growth trails the fantastic shareholder returns

Simply Wall St · 10/15 11:21

When you buy shares in a company, it's worth keeping in mind the possibility that it could fail, and you could lose your money. But on the bright side, you can make far more than 100% on a really good stock. One great example is Installed Building Products, Inc. (NYSE:IBP) which saw its share price drive 282% higher over five years. In more good news, the share price has risen 12% in thirty days.

Since it's been a strong week for Installed Building Products shareholders, let's have a look at trend of the longer term fundamentals.

View our latest analysis for Installed Building Products

To quote Buffett, 'Ships will sail around the world but the Flat Earth Society will flourish. There will continue to be wide discrepancies between price and value in the marketplace...' 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.

Over half a decade, Installed Building Products managed to grow its earnings per share at 36% a year. So the EPS growth rate is rather close to the annualized share price gain of 31% per year. That suggests that the market sentiment around the company hasn't changed much over that time. In fact, the share price seems to largely reflect the EPS growth.

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

earnings-per-share-growth
NYSE:IBP Earnings Per Share Growth October 15th 2024

It is of course excellent to see how Installed Building Products has grown profits over the years, but the future is more important for shareholders. It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on how its financial position has changed over time.

What About Dividends?

When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. The TSR is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. In the case of Installed Building Products, it has a TSR of 307% for the last 5 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that Installed Building Products shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 114% over the last year. Of course, that includes the dividend. That gain is better than the annual TSR over five years, which is 32%. Therefore it seems like sentiment around the company has been positive lately. Given the share price momentum remains strong, it might be worth taking a closer look at the stock, lest you miss an opportunity. 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. Take risks, for example - Installed Building Products has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.

But note: Installed Building Products may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with past earnings growth (and further growth forecast).

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