Ellie Mae Inc.'s Shares Soar on Results That Confirm Its Growth Story

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What's happening: Shares of Ellie Mae rose as much as 19% on Friday morning after the company announced blowout first-quarter results and raised guidance for the full year much above Wall Street's expectations.

Why it's happening: Here's how the headline numbers shook out:

*Adjusted. Source: Thomson Financial Network, Ellie Mae.

Multinationals in the S&P 500 have been pointing to the strong dollar to explain revenue shortfalls, but there is no such headwind for residential mortgage software provider Ellie Mae, which is focused on the U.S. market. Here's how CEO Jonathan Corr explained the company's stellar revenue growth in the first quarter:

(For more granularity on Ellie Mae's results, let me refer you to my Foolish colleague Dan Caplinger's analysis.)

No doubt about it, Ellie Mae is a growth business and, as such, it is reinvesting significant amounts of capital in the business. In the first quarter alone, the company invested $16 million in capital projects - roughly equal to its adjusted EBITDA -- with capital expenditures expected at between $40 million and $45 million for the full year.

The company's results fuel investor expectations for future growth and the shares trade at premium multiples: 52 times forward earnings-per-share and 40 times cash flow, per research firm Morningstar. That needn't be a problem, as the company is growing at a rapid clip (and, crucially, that growth is profitable). As always, investors ought to remain focused on the long term to allow Ellie Mae's full promise to play out.

The article Ellie Mae Inc.'s Shares Soar on Results That Confirm Its Growth Story originally appeared on Fool.com.

Alex Dumortier, CFA has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Apple and Ellie Mae. The Motley Fool owns shares of Apple. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.