Even after rising 13% this past week, DEMIRE Deutsche Mittelstand Real Estate (ETR:DMRE) shareholders are still down 83% over the past five years

This week we saw the DEMIRE Deutsche Mittelstand Real Estate AG (ETR:DMRE) share price climb by 13%. But that doesn't change the fact that the returns over the last half decade have been stomach churning. In fact, the share price has tumbled down a mountain to land 86% lower after that period. The recent bounce might mean the long decline is over, but we are not confident. The real question is whether the business can leave its past behind and improve itself over the years ahead. We really hope anyone holding through that price crash has a diversified portfolio. Even when you lose money, you don't have to lose the lesson.

While the last five years has been tough for DEMIRE Deutsche Mittelstand Real Estate shareholders, this past week has shown signs of promise. So let's look at the longer term fundamentals and see if they've been the driver of the negative returns.

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Because DEMIRE Deutsche Mittelstand Real Estate made a loss in the last twelve months, we think the market is probably more focussed on revenue and revenue growth, at least for now. When a company doesn't make profits, we'd generally hope to see good revenue growth. Some companies are willing to postpone profitability to grow revenue faster, but in that case one would hope for good top-line growth to make up for the lack of earnings.

Over half a decade DEMIRE Deutsche Mittelstand Real Estate reduced its trailing twelve month revenue by 9.8% for each year. That puts it in an unattractive cohort, to put it mildly. So it's not altogether surprising to see the share price down 13% per year in the same time period. We don't think this is a particularly promising picture. Of course, the poor performance could mean the market has been too severe selling down. That can happen.

You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

Balance sheet strength is crucial. It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on how its financial position has changed over time.

What About The Total Shareholder Return (TSR)?

We've already covered DEMIRE Deutsche Mittelstand Real Estate's share price action, but we should also mention its total shareholder return (TSR). The TSR attempts to capture the value of dividends (as if they were reinvested) as well as any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings offered to shareholders. DEMIRE Deutsche Mittelstand Real Estate's TSR of was a loss of 83% for the 5 years. That wasn't as bad as its share price return, because it has paid dividends.

A Different Perspective

Investors in DEMIRE Deutsche Mittelstand Real Estate had a tough year, with a total loss of 44%, against a market gain of about 16%. 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. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 13% per year over five years. We realise that Baron Rothschild 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 business. 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 DEMIRE Deutsche Mittelstand Real Estate is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those shouldn't be ignored...

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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 German 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.