Caisse régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Atlantique Vendée's (EPA:CRAV) earnings have declined over five years, contributing to shareholders 33% loss

Caisse régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Atlantique Vendée (EPA:CRAV) shareholders should be happy to see the share price up 12% in the last month. But over the last half decade, the stock has not performed well. After all, the share price is down 45% in that time, significantly under-performing the market.

The recent uptick of 8.2% could be a positive sign of things to come, so let's take a look at historical fundamentals.

View our latest analysis for Caisse régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Atlantique Vendée

While the efficient markets hypothesis continues to be taught by some, it has been proven that markets are over-reactive dynamic systems, and investors are not always rational. 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.

During the five years over which the share price declined, Caisse régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Atlantique Vendée's earnings per share (EPS) dropped by 8.1% each year. Readers should note that the share price has fallen faster than the EPS, at a rate of 11% per year, over the period. This implies that the market is more cautious about the business these days. The less favorable sentiment is reflected in its current P/E ratio of 7.86.

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

Dive deeper into Caisse régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Atlantique Vendée's key metrics by checking this interactive graph of Caisse régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Atlantique Vendée's earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What About Dividends?

When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. We note that for Caisse régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Atlantique Vendée the TSR over the last 5 years was -33%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

Caisse régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Atlantique Vendée shareholders gained a total return of 2.3% during the year. But that return falls short of the market. But at least that's still a gain! Over five years the TSR has been a reduction of 6% per year, over five years. It could well be that the business is stabilizing. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Caisse régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Atlantique Vendée better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks, for example - Caisse régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Atlantique Vendée has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.

Of course Caisse régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Atlantique Vendée may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of growth stocks.

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