Orient International Enterprise (SHSE:600278) earnings and shareholder returns have been trending downwards for the last five years, but the stock rallies 9.8% this past week

Orient International Enterprise, Ltd. (SHSE:600278) shareholders will doubtless be very grateful to see the share price up 52% in the last quarter. But that doesn't change the fact that the returns over the last five years have been less than pleasing. After all, the share price is down 23% in that time, significantly under-performing the market.

While the stock has risen 9.8% in the past week but long term shareholders are still in the red, let's see what the fundamentals can tell us.

See our latest analysis for Orient International Enterprise

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.

Looking back five years, both Orient International Enterprise's share price and EPS declined; the latter at a rate of 4.0% per year. Readers should note that the share price has fallen faster than the EPS, at a rate of 5% per year, over the period. This implies that the market is more cautious about the business these days.

You can see below how EPS has changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

This free interactive report on Orient International Enterprise's earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

What About Dividends?

As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). The TSR incorporates the value of any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings, along with any dividends, based on the assumption that the dividends are reinvested. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. In the case of Orient International Enterprise, it has a TSR of -17% for the last 5 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that Orient International Enterprise shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 16% over the last year. And that does include the dividend. That certainly beats the loss of about 3% per year over the last half decade. The long term loss makes us cautious, but the short term TSR gain certainly hints at a brighter future. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Orient International Enterprise better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 2 warning signs with Orient International Enterprise , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

We will like Orient International Enterprise better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of undervalued stocks (mostly small caps) with considerable, recent, insider buying.

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.