Lerøy Seafood Group's (OB:LSG) earnings trajectory could turn positive as the stock increases 4.5% this past week

Lerøy Seafood Group ASA (OB:LSG) shareholders should be happy to see the share price up 15% in the last month. But that doesn't help the fact that the three year return is less impressive. In fact, the share price is down 33% in the last three years, falling well short of the market return.

While the stock has risen 4.5% in the past week but long term shareholders are still in the red, let's see what the fundamentals can tell us.

See our latest analysis for Lerøy Seafood Group

While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. One way to examine how market sentiment has changed over time is to look at the interaction between a company's share price and its earnings per share (EPS).

Lerøy Seafood Group saw its EPS decline at a compound rate of 3.3% per year, over the last three years. The share price decline of 13% is actually steeper than the EPS slippage. So it seems the market was too confident about the business, in the past.

The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).

We know that Lerøy Seafood Group has improved its bottom line lately, but is it going to grow revenue? You could check out this free report showing analyst revenue forecasts.

What About Dividends?

As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). 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. In the case of Lerøy Seafood Group, it has a TSR of -24% for the last 3 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that Lerøy Seafood Group shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 24% over the last year. Of course, that includes the dividend. That's better than the annualised return of 0.8% over half a decade, implying that the company is doing better recently. Someone with an optimistic perspective could view the recent improvement in TSR as indicating that the business itself is getting better with time. 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. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Lerøy Seafood Group you should know about.

We will like Lerøy Seafood Group 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 Norwegian 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.