For beginners, it can seem like a good idea (and an exciting prospect) to buy a company that tells a good story to investors, even if it currently lacks a track record of revenue and profit. 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.

In contrast to all that, many investors prefer to focus on companies like Madison Square Garden Sports (NYSE:MSGS), which has not only revenues, but also profits. Even if this company is fairly valued by the market, investors would agree that generating consistent profits will continue to provide Madison Square Garden Sports with the means to add long-term value to shareholders.

See our latest analysis for Madison Square Garden Sports

Madison Square Garden Sports' Earnings Per Share Are Growing

If you believe that markets are even vaguely efficient, then over the long term you'd expect a company's share price to follow its earnings per share (EPS) outcomes. Therefore, there are plenty of investors who like to buy shares in companies that are growing EPS. It certainly is nice to see that Madison Square Garden Sports has managed to grow EPS by 21% per year over three years. As a result, we can understand why the stock trades on a high multiple of trailing twelve month earnings.

Top-line growth is a great indicator that growth is sustainable, and combined with a high earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margin, it's a great way for a company to maintain a competitive advantage in the market. Madison Square Garden Sports shareholders can take confidence from the fact that EBIT margins are up from 9.6% to 14%, and revenue is growing. Ticking those two boxes is a good sign of growth, in our book.

The chart below shows how the company's bottom and top lines have progressed over time. To see the actual numbers, click on the chart.

Fortunately, we've got access to analyst forecasts of Madison Square Garden Sports' future profits. You can do your own forecasts without looking, or you can take a peek at what the professionals are predicting.

Are Madison Square Garden Sports Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

It's pleasing to see company leaders with putting their money on the line, so to speak, because it increases alignment of incentives between the people running the business, and its true owners. So it is good to see that Madison Square Garden Sports insiders have a significant amount of capital invested in the stock. With a whopping US$51m worth of shares as a group, insiders have plenty riding on the company's success. That's certainly enough to let shareholders know that management will be very focussed on long term growth.