Investors who have held Ooredoo Q.P.S.C (DSM:ORDS) over the last five years have watched its earnings decline along with their investment

For many, the main point of investing is to generate higher returns than the overall market. But in any portfolio, there will be mixed results between individual stocks. So we wouldn't blame long term Ooredoo Q.P.S.C. (DSM:ORDS) shareholders for doubting their decision to hold, with the stock down 33% over a half decade.

While the last five years has been tough for Ooredoo Q.P.S.C shareholders, this past week has shown signs of promise. So let's look at the longer term fundamentals and see if they've been the driver of the negative returns.

Check out our latest analysis for Ooredoo Q.P.S.C

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.

Looking back five years, both Ooredoo Q.P.S.C's share price and EPS declined; the latter at a rate of 54% per year. The share price decline of 8% per year isn't as bad as the EPS decline. So investors might expect EPS to bounce back -- or they may have previously foreseen the EPS decline. With a P/E ratio of 517.76, it's fair to say the market sees a brighter future for the business.

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

Dive deeper into Ooredoo Q.P.S.C's key metrics by checking this interactive graph of Ooredoo Q.P.S.C'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 incorporates the value of any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings, along with any dividends, based on the assumption that the dividends are reinvested. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. As it happens, Ooredoo Q.P.S.C's TSR for the last 5 years was -19%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. This is largely a result of its dividend payments!

A Different Perspective

Ooredoo Q.P.S.C provided a TSR of 0.9% over the last twelve months. Unfortunately this falls short of the market return. On the bright side, that's still a gain, and it is certainly better than the yearly loss of about 4% endured over half a decade. So this might be a sign the business has turned its fortunes around. 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. Even so, be aware that Ooredoo Q.P.S.C is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those is concerning...

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