It's common for many investors, especially those who are inexperienced, to buy shares in companies with a good story even if these companies are loss-making. Unfortunately, these high risk investments often have little probability of ever paying off, and many investors pay a price to learn their lesson. A loss-making company is yet to prove itself with profit, and eventually the inflow of external capital may dry up.

Despite being in the age of tech-stock blue-sky investing, many investors still adopt a more traditional strategy; buying shares in profitable companies like Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT). While profit isn't the sole metric that should be considered when investing, it's worth recognising businesses that can consistently produce it.

View our latest analysis for Vertiv Holdings Co

Vertiv Holdings Co'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 you'd expect share price to follow earnings per share (EPS) outcomes eventually. That makes EPS growth an attractive quality for any company. To the delight of shareholders, Vertiv Holdings Co has achieved impressive annual EPS growth of 57%, compound, over the last three years. While that sort of growth rate isn't sustainable for long, it certainly catches the eye of prospective investors.

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. Vertiv Holdings Co shareholders can take confidence from the fact that EBIT margins are up from 13% to 17%, and revenue is growing. Ticking those two boxes is a good sign of growth, in our book.

In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings and revenue, over time. Click on the chart to see the exact numbers.

In investing, as in life, the future matters more than the past. So why not check out this free interactive visualization of Vertiv Holdings Co's forecast profits?

Are Vertiv Holdings Co Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

We would not expect to see insiders owning a large percentage of a US$41b company like Vertiv Holdings Co. But we do take comfort from the fact that they are investors in the company. Indeed, they have a considerable amount of wealth invested in it, currently valued at US$136m. While that is a lot of skin in the game, we note this holding only totals to 0.3% of the business, which is a result of the company being so large. This still shows shareholders there is a degree of alignment between management and themselves.

While it's always good to see some strong conviction in the company from insiders through heavy investment, it's also important for shareholders to ask if management compensation policies are reasonable. Our quick analysis into CEO remuneration would seem to indicate they are. Our analysis has discovered that the median total compensation for the CEOs of companies like Vertiv Holdings Co, with market caps over US$8.0b, is about US$12m.

The CEO of Vertiv Holdings Co only received US$6.2m in total compensation for the year ending December 2023. That's clearly well below average, so at a glance that arrangement seems generous to shareholders and points to a modest remuneration culture. 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. Generally, arguments can be made that reasonable pay levels attest to good decision-making.

Should You Add Vertiv Holdings Co To Your Watchlist?

Vertiv Holdings Co's earnings have taken off in quite an impressive fashion. The sweetener is that insiders have a mountain of stock, and the CEO remuneration is quite reasonable. The strong EPS improvement suggests the businesses is humming along. Vertiv Holdings Co is certainly doing some things right and is well worth investigating. Even so, be aware that Vertiv Holdings Co is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis , you should know about...

Although Vertiv Holdings Co certainly looks good, it may appeal to more investors if insiders were buying up shares. If you like to see companies with more skin in the game, then check out this handpicked selection of companies that not only boast of strong growth but have strong insider backing.

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.