It is a pleasure to report that the GTY Technology Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:GTYH) is up 90% in the last quarter. But that doesn't change the fact that the returns over the last three years have been less than pleasing. Truth be told the share price declined 30% in three years and that return, Dear Reader, falls short of what you could have got from passive investing with an index fund.

See our latest analysis for GTY Technology Holdings

GTY Technology Holdings wasn't profitable in the last twelve months, it is unlikely we'll see a strong correlation between its share price and its earnings per share (EPS). Arguably revenue is our next best option. Generally speaking, companies without profits are expected to grow revenue every year, and at a good clip. That's because it's hard to be confident a company will be sustainable if revenue growth is negligible, and it never makes a profit.

In the last three years, GTY Technology Holdings saw its revenue grow by 43% per year, compound. That's well above most other pre-profit companies. The share price drop of 9% per year over three years would be considered disappointing by many, so you might argue the company is getting little credit for its impressive revenue growth. It's possible that the prior share price assumed unrealistically high future growth. Before considering a purchase, investors should consider how quickly expenses are growing, relative to revenue.

The image below shows how earnings and revenue have tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

It's good to see that there was some significant insider buying in the last three months. That's a positive. That said, we think earnings and revenue growth trends are even more important factors to consider. If you are thinking of buying or selling GTY Technology Holdings stock, you should check out this free report showing analyst profit forecasts.

A Different Perspective

GTY Technology Holdings produced a TSR of 2.4% over the last year. Unfortunately this falls short of the market return of around 31%. The silver lining is that the recent rise is far preferable to the annual loss of 9% that shareholders have suffered over the last three years. It could well be that the business is stabilizing. 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. To that end, you should learn about the 4 warning signs we've spotted with GTY Technology Holdings (including 1 which makes us a bit uncomfortable) .