When you buy shares in a company, there is always a risk that the price drops to zero. But when you pick a company that is really flourishing, you can make more than 100%. For example, the Regis Healthcare Limited (ASX:REG) share price has soared 106% return in just a single year. On top of that, the share price is up 23% in about a quarter. Looking back further, the stock price is 97% higher than it was three years ago.

Let's take a look at the underlying fundamentals over the longer term, and see if they've been consistent with shareholders returns.

Check out our latest analysis for Regis Healthcare

Because Regis Healthcare 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. 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 year Regis Healthcare saw its revenue grow by 19%. That's a fairly respectable growth rate. The revenue growth is decent but the share price had an even better year, gaining 106%. Given that the business has made good progress on the top line, it would be worth taking a look at its path to profitability. But investors need to be wary of how the 'fear of missing out' could influence them to buy without doing thorough research.

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

This free interactive report on Regis Healthcare's balance sheet strength is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

What About Dividends?

As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). The TSR incorporates the value of any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings, along with any dividends, based on the assumption that the dividends are reinvested. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. We note that for Regis Healthcare the TSR over the last 1 year was 116%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!

A Different Perspective

It's good to see that Regis Healthcare has rewarded shareholders with a total shareholder return of 116% in the last twelve months. And that does include the dividend. Since the one-year TSR is better than the five-year TSR (the latter coming in at 7% per year), it would seem that the stock's performance has improved in recent times. Given the share price momentum remains strong, it might be worth taking a closer look at the stock, lest you miss an opportunity. Before spending more time on Regis Healthcare it might be wise to click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling shares.