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Statistically speaking, long term investing is a profitable endeavour. But along the way some stocks are going to perform badly. To wit, the Houston Wire & Cable Company (NASDAQ:HWCC) share price managed to fall 59% over five long years. That is extremely sub-optimal, to say the least. And some of the more recent buyers are probably worried, too, with the stock falling 37% in the last year. Furthermore, it’s down 18% in about a quarter. That’s not much fun for holders.
Check out our latest analysis for Houston Wire & Cable
While the efficient markets hypothesis continues to be taught by some, it has been proven that markets are over-reactive dynamic systems, and investors are not always rational. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.
Houston Wire & Cable became profitable within the last five years. That would generally be considered a positive, so we are surprised to see the share price is down. Other metrics might give us a better handle on how its value is changing over time.
It could be that the revenue decline of 3.1% per year is viewed as evidence that Houston Wire & Cable is shrinking. That could explain the weak share price.
We consider it positive that insiders have made significant purchases in the last year. Having said that, most people consider earnings and revenue growth trends to be a more meaningful guide to the business. Dive deeper into the earnings by checking this interactive graph of Houston Wire & Cable’s earnings, revenue and cash flow.
A Dividend Lost
It’s important to keep in mind that we’ve been talking about the share price returns, which don’t include dividends, while the total shareholder return does. By accounting for the value of dividends paid, the TSR can be seen as a more complete measure of the value a company brings to its shareholders. Over the last 5 years, Houston Wire & Cable generated a TSR of -55%, which is, of course, better than the share price return. Although the company had to cut dividends, it has paid cash to shareholders in the past.
A Different Perspective
Investors in Houston Wire & Cable had a tough year, with a total loss of 37%, against a market gain of about 7.0%. Even the share prices of good stocks drop sometimes, but we want to see improvements in the fundamental metrics of a business, before getting too interested. Unfortunately, last year’s performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 15% over the last half decade. We realise that Buffett has said investors should ‘buy when there is blood on the streets’, but we caution that investors should first be sure they are buying a high quality businesses. It is all well and good that insiders have been buying shares, but we suggest you check here to see what price insiders were buying at.
Houston Wire & Cable is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.
Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on US exchanges.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.