The most you can lose on any stock (assuming you don't use leverage) is 100% of your money. But if you pick the right business to buy shares in, you can make more than you can lose. For example, the EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) share price has soared 113% in the last 1 year. Most would be very happy with that, especially in just one year! Also pleasing for shareholders was the 17% gain in the last three months. But this move may well have been assisted by the reasonably buoyant market (up 7.8% in 90 days). Unfortunately the longer term returns are not so good, with the stock falling 19% in the last three years.

In light of the stock dropping 3.3% in the past week, we want to investigate the longer term story, and see if fundamentals have been the driver of the company's positive one-year return.

See our latest analysis for EchoStar

EchoStar isn't currently profitable, so most analysts would look to revenue growth to get an idea of how fast the underlying business is growing. Shareholders of unprofitable companies usually desire strong revenue growth. That's because fast revenue growth can be easily extrapolated to forecast profits, often of considerable size.

In the last year EchoStar saw its revenue shrink by 47%. So we would not have expected the share price to rise 113%. This is a good example of how buyers can push up prices even before the fundamental metrics show much growth. It's quite likely the revenue fall was already priced in, anyway.

You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

We consider it positive that insiders have made significant purchases in the last year. Even so, future earnings will be far more important to whether current shareholders make money. This free report showing analyst forecasts should help you form a view on EchoStar

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that EchoStar shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 113% over the last year. Notably the five-year annualised TSR loss of 8% per year compares very unfavourably with the recent share price performance. This makes us a little wary, but the business might have turned around its fortunes. 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. For instance, we've identified 3 warning signs for EchoStar (2 shouldn't be ignored) that you should be aware of.

EchoStar is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of small cap companies at attractive valuations which insiders have been buying.

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

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.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.