Investors one-year losses continue as Qatar Fuel Company Q.P.S.C. (WOQOD) (DSM:QFLS) dips a further 3.2% this week, earnings continue to decline

It's understandable if you feel frustrated when a stock you own sees a lower share price. But in the short term the market is a voting machine, and the share price movements may not reflect the underlying business performance. So while the Qatar Fuel Company Q.P.S.C. ("WOQOD") (DSM:QFLS) share price is down 17% in the last year, the total return to shareholders (which includes dividends) was -13%. That's better than the market which declined 18% over the last year. At least the damage isn't so bad if you look at the last three years, since the stock is down 8.0% in that time.

Since Qatar Fuel Company Q.P.S.C. (WOQOD) has shed ر.ق527m from its value in the past 7 days, let's see if the longer term decline has been driven by the business' economics.

Check out our latest analysis for Qatar Fuel Company Q.P.S.C. (WOQOD)

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 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.

Unfortunately Qatar Fuel Company Q.P.S.C. (WOQOD) reported an EPS drop of 0.5% for the last year. The share price decline of 17% is actually more than the EPS drop. This suggests the EPS fall has made some shareholders are more nervous about the business.

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

Before buying or selling a stock, we always recommend a close examination of historic growth trends, available here.

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. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. As it happens, Qatar Fuel Company Q.P.S.C. (WOQOD)'s TSR for the last 1 year was -13%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

While it's certainly disappointing to see that Qatar Fuel Company Q.P.S.C. (WOQOD) shares lost 13% throughout the year, that wasn't as bad as the market loss of 18%. Of course, the long term returns are far more important and the good news is that over five years, the stock has returned 3% for each year. In the best case scenario the last year is just a temporary blip on the journey to a brighter future. 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. To that end, you should learn about the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Qatar Fuel Company Q.P.S.C. (WOQOD) (including 1 which is concerning) .

But note: Qatar Fuel Company Q.P.S.C. (WOQOD) may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with past earnings growth (and further growth forecast).

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