Anjani Portland Cement (NSE:APCL investor three-year losses grow to 43% as the stock sheds ₹507m this past week

For many investors, the main point of stock picking is to generate higher returns than the overall market. But its virtually certain that sometimes you will buy stocks that fall short of the market average returns. Unfortunately, that's been the case for longer term Anjani Portland Cement Limited (NSE:APCL) shareholders, since the share price is down 47% in the last three years, falling well short of the market return of around 51%. And more recent buyers are having a tough time too, with a drop of 29% in the last year. And the share price decline continued over the last week, dropping some 10%.

After losing 10% this past week, it's worth investigating the company's fundamentals to see what we can infer from past performance.

View our latest analysis for Anjani Portland Cement

Because Anjani Portland Cement 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. As you can imagine, fast revenue growth, when maintained, often leads to fast profit growth.

Over the last three years, Anjani Portland Cement's revenue dropped 10.0% per year. That is not a good result. The annual decline of 14% per year in that period has clearly disappointed holders. That makes sense given the lack of either profits or revenue growth. Of course, sentiment could become too negative, and the company may actually be making progress to profitability.

You can see how earnings and revenue have changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).

If you are thinking of buying or selling Anjani Portland Cement stock, you should check out this FREE detailed report on its balance sheet.

What About The Total Shareholder Return (TSR)?

We've already covered Anjani Portland Cement's share price action, but we should also mention its 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. Dividends have been really beneficial for Anjani Portland Cement shareholders, and that cash payout explains why its total shareholder loss of 43%, over the last 3 years, isn't as bad as the share price return.

A Different Perspective

While the broader market gained around 4.9% in the last year, Anjani Portland Cement shareholders lost 29%. 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. On the bright side, long term shareholders have made money, with a gain of 2% per year over half a decade. If the fundamental data continues to indicate long term sustainable growth, the current sell-off could be an opportunity worth considering. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Anjani Portland Cement better, we need to consider many other factors. Case in point: We've spotted 3 warning signs for Anjani Portland Cement you should be aware of, and 2 of them don't sit too well with us.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of companies we expect will grow earnings.

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