Investors one-year returns in Puyang Refractories Group (SZSE:002225) have not grown faster than the company's underlying earnings growth

The Puyang Refractories Group Co., Ltd. (SZSE:002225) share price has had a bad week, falling 14%. But that doesn't change the reality that over twelve months the stock has done really well. To wit, it had solidly beat the market, up 14%.

While this past week has detracted from the company's one-year return, let's look at the recent trends of the underlying business and see if the gains have been in alignment.

See our latest analysis for Puyang Refractories Group

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. One flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price.

Puyang Refractories Group was able to grow EPS by 38% in the last twelve months. It's fair to say that the share price gain of 14% did not keep pace with the EPS growth. So it seems like the market has cooled on Puyang Refractories Group, despite the growth. Interesting.

The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).

We know that Puyang Refractories Group has improved its bottom line lately, but is it going to grow revenue? Check if analysts think Puyang Refractories Group will grow revenue in the future.

A Different Perspective

We're pleased to report that Puyang Refractories Group shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 16% over one year. Of course, that includes the dividend. That gain is better than the annual TSR over five years, which is 0.3%. Therefore it seems like sentiment around the company has been positive lately. Someone with an optimistic perspective could view the recent improvement in TSR as indicating that the business itself is getting better with time. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. Even so, be aware that Puyang Refractories Group is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those is a bit concerning...

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