q.beyond (ETR:QBY) adds €13m to market cap in the past 7 days, though investors from three years ago are still down 61%

While it may not be enough for some shareholders, we think it is good to see the q.beyond AG (ETR:QBY) share price up 21% in a single quarter. Meanwhile over the last three years the stock has dropped hard. In that time, the share price dropped 61%. So the improvement may be a real relief to some. The rise has some hopeful, but turnarounds are often precarious.

On a more encouraging note the company has added €13m 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.

See our latest analysis for q.beyond

Given that q.beyond didn't make a profit in the last twelve months, we'll focus on revenue growth to form a quick view of its business development. When a company doesn't make profits, we'd generally expect to see good revenue growth. Some companies are willing to postpone profitability to grow revenue faster, but in that case one does expect good top-line growth.

Over three years, q.beyond grew revenue at 9.6% per year. That's a pretty good rate of top-line growth. That contrasts with the weak share price, which has fallen 17% compounded, over three years. To be frank we're surprised to see revenue growth and share price growth diverge so strongly. So this is one stock that might be worth investigating further, or even adding to your watchlist.

The graphic below depicts how earnings and revenue have changed over time (unveil 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.

A Different Perspective

q.beyond shareholders are down 39% for the year, but the market itself is up 4.1%. 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. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 8% over the last half decade. Generally speaking long term share price weakness can be a bad sign, though contrarian investors might want to research the stock in hope of a turnaround. 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. To that end, you should be aware of the 3 warning signs we've spotted with q.beyond .

We will like q.beyond better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies 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 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.