Woolworths Limited (ASX: WOW) shares may appear relatively cheap and pay a reasonably solid fully franked 3.5% dividend. But with its earnings expected to decline significantly in FY 2017, I personally wouldn't be surprised to see its share price still drift lower.
So instead of investing in a company will declining earnings, I would suggest investors focus on companies which are growing their earnings. Three companies which are expected to grow earnings at an incredibly strong rate over the next few years are as follows:
Altium Limited (ASX: ALU)
Altium is a company which I expect will continue to profit from the phenomenal growth of the internet of things market. Earlier this year US-giant Cisco predicted the market would be worth upwards of US$14.4 trillion by 2022. Altium plays a key role in the industry by providing software that enables companies to design printed circuit boards used in connected devices. In FY 2016 the company reported a 20.9% rise in EBITDA to US$27.4 million. The good news is that analysts are expecting this strong run to continue. They have forecast earnings to grow at over 26% per annum for the next couple of years according to CommSec. After getting ahead of themselves recently, I believe Altium's shares are now reasonably fair value.
Money3 Corporation Limited (ASX: MNY)
This rapidly growing small loans company is not only great for growth investors, but it's a decent option for income investors as well in my opinion. Money3 recently announced a stunning 40% increase in full-year revenue to $96 million and a 54% increase in net profit after tax to $20 million. Impressively next year earnings are expected to continue growing at around 43% year on year thanks to the strong performance of its auto loans segment. Despite this, its shares are still trading at just over 12x full year earnings and expected to provide a fully franked 4% dividend in FY 2017.
WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC)
This cloud-based supply chain management software provider is forecast by analysts to grow earnings by an incredible 65% per annum for the next couple of years. Whilst this growth rate may seem excessive, thanks to the growing popularity of its software I wouldn't be surprised to see it deliver on these high expectations. WiseTech Global has approximately 6,000 customers on its books, with some of the world's largest logistics companies amongst them. Its shares may be expensive at 55x estimated FY 2017 earnings, but its explosive growth prospects go some way to justifying this premium in my eyes.
