scPharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:SCPH) shareholders will doubtless be very grateful to see the share price up 93% in the last quarter. But if you look at the last five years the returns have not been good. In fact, the share price is down 41%, which falls well short of the return you could get by buying an index fund.

While the stock has risen 13% in the past week but long term shareholders are still in the red, let's see what the fundamentals can tell us.

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Because scPharmaceuticals made a loss in the last twelve months, we think the market is probably more focussed on revenue and revenue growth, at least for now. Shareholders of unprofitable companies usually desire strong revenue growth. Some companies are willing to postpone profitability to grow revenue faster, but in that case one would hope for good top-line growth to make up for the lack of earnings.

Over five years, scPharmaceuticals grew its revenue at 85% per year. That's well above most other pre-profit companies. Shareholders are no doubt disappointed with the loss of 7%, each year, in that time. You could say that the market has been harsh, given the top line growth. So now is probably an apt time to look closer at the stock, if you think it has potential.

You can see how earnings and revenue have changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).

Take a more thorough look at scPharmaceuticals' financial health with this free report on its balance sheet.

A Different Perspective

Investors in scPharmaceuticals had a tough year, with a total loss of 2.8%, against a market gain of about 15%. Even the share prices of good stocks drop sometimes, but we want to see improvements in the fundamental metrics of a business, before getting too interested. However, the loss over the last year isn't as bad as the 7% per annum loss investors have suffered over the last half decade. We would want clear information suggesting the company will grow, before taking the view that the share price will stabilize. 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. Case in point: We've spotted 4 warning signs for scPharmaceuticals you should be aware of, and 2 of them are concerning.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of companies that have proven they can grow earnings.

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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