Hunan Kaimeite Gases (SZSE:002549 investor three-year losses grow to 62% as the stock sheds CN¥382m this past week

Hunan Kaimeite Gases Co., Ltd. (SZSE:002549) shareholders should be happy to see the share price up 15% in the last quarter. Meanwhile over the last three years the stock has dropped hard. Regrettably, the share price slid 62% in that period. Some might say the recent bounce is to be expected after such a bad drop. Perhaps the company has turned over a new leaf.

After losing 7.5% this past week, it's worth investigating the company's fundamentals to see what we can infer from past performance.

Check out our latest analysis for Hunan Kaimeite Gases

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. 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.

Hunan Kaimeite Gases saw its share price decline over the three years in which its EPS also dropped, falling to a loss. Due to the loss, it's not easy to use EPS as a reliable guide to the business. But it's safe to say we'd generally expect the share price to be lower as a result!

You can see how EPS has changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).

This free interactive report on Hunan Kaimeite Gases' earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

A Different Perspective

While the broader market gained around 12% in the last year, Hunan Kaimeite Gases shareholders lost 31%. 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. On the bright side, long term shareholders have made money, with a gain of 3% per year over half a decade. It could be that the recent sell-off is an opportunity, so it may be worth checking the fundamental data for signs of a long term growth trend. You could get a better understanding of Hunan Kaimeite Gases' growth by checking out this more detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow.

For those who like to find winning investments this free list of undervalued companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

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.