Shareholders in Jupiter Fund Management (LON:JUP) have lost 71%, as stock drops 14% this past week

Long term investing works well, but it doesn't always work for each individual stock. We really hate to see fellow investors lose their hard-earned money. Imagine if you held Jupiter Fund Management Plc (LON:JUP) for half a decade as the share price tanked 81%. Furthermore, it's down 16% in about a quarter. That's not much fun for holders. We really feel for shareholders in this scenario. It's a good reminder of the importance of diversification, and it's worth keeping in mind there's more to life than money, anyway.

After losing 14% this past week, it's worth investigating the company's fundamentals to see what we can infer from past performance.

See our latest analysis for Jupiter Fund Management

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.

Over five years Jupiter Fund Management's earnings per share dropped significantly, falling to a loss, with the share price also lower. The recent extraordinary items contributed to this situation. At present it's hard to make valid comparisons between EPS and the share price. But we would generally expect a lower price, given the situation.

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

Dive deeper into Jupiter Fund Management's key metrics by checking this interactive graph of Jupiter Fund Management's earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What About Dividends?

As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). The TSR is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. As it happens, Jupiter Fund Management's TSR for the last 5 years was -71%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. This is largely a result of its dividend payments!

A Different Perspective

Jupiter Fund Management provided a TSR of 3.3% over the last twelve months. But that was short of the market average. But at least that's still a gain! Over five years the TSR has been a reduction of 11% 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 Jupiter Fund Management better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Jupiter Fund Management you should know about.

We will like Jupiter Fund Management 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 British 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.