Prospa Group (ASX:PGL) shareholders are up 11% this past week, but still in the red over the last three years

It's nice to see the Prospa Group Limited (ASX:PGL) share price up 11% in a week. Meanwhile over the last three years the stock has dropped hard. Indeed, the share price is down a tragic 67% in the last three years. Some might say the recent bounce is to be expected after such a bad drop. Perhaps the company has turned over a new leaf.

On a more encouraging note the company has added AU$9.8m to its market cap in just the last 7 days, so let's see if we can determine what's driven the three-year loss for shareholders.

Check out the opportunities and risks within the AU Consumer Finance industry.

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. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement.

Prospa Group became profitable within the last five years. We would usually expect to see the share price rise as a result. So given the share price is down it's worth checking some other metrics too.

With revenue flat over three years, it seems unlikely that the share price is reflecting the top line. We're not entirely sure why the share price is dropped, but it does seem likely investors have become less optimistic about the business.

The graphic below depicts how earnings and revenue have changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

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. If you are thinking of buying or selling Prospa Group stock, you should check out this free report showing analyst profit forecasts.

A Different Perspective

Over the last year, Prospa Group shareholders took a loss of 20%. In contrast the market gained about 2.8%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Unfortunately, the longer term story isn't pretty, with investment losses running at 19% per year over three years. We would want clear information suggesting the company will grow, before taking the view that the share price will stabilize. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Prospa Group better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should learn about the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Prospa Group (including 1 which makes us a bit uncomfortable) .

If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on AU exchanges.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.