Bixolon's (KOSDAQ:093190) Stock Price Has Reduced 32% In The Past Three Years

While not a mind-blowing move, it is good to see that the Bixolon Co., Ltd (KOSDAQ:093190) share price has gained 11% in the last three months. But that doesn't help the fact that the three year return is less impressive. In fact, the share price is down 32% in the last three years, falling well short of the market return.

See our latest analysis for Bixolon

In his essay The Superinvestors of Graham-and-Doddsville Warren Buffett described how share prices do not always rationally reflect the value of a business. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement.

Bixolon saw its EPS decline at a compound rate of 16% per year, over the last three years. This fall in the EPS is worse than the 12% compound annual share price fall. So, despite the prior disappointment, shareholders must have some confidence the situation will improve, longer term.

The graphic below depicts how EPS has changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

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

What About Dividends?

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. 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. In the case of Bixolon, it has a TSR of -24% for the last 3 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. This is largely a result of its dividend payments!

A Different Perspective

Bixolon shareholders are down 9.8% for the year (even including dividends), but the market itself is up 46%. 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 3% 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. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. For example, we've discovered 3 warning signs for Bixolon (1 is significant!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

Of course Bixolon 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 KR exchanges.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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.
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