The three-year earnings decline has likely contributed toMandarin Oriental International's (SGX:M04) shareholders losses of 20% over that period

As an investor its worth striving to ensure your overall portfolio beats the market average. But if you try your hand at stock picking, you risk returning less than the market. Unfortunately, that's been the case for longer term Mandarin Oriental International Limited (SGX:M04) shareholders, since the share price is down 23% in the last three years, falling well short of the market return of around 16%.

After losing 4.5% 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 Mandarin Oriental International

Mandarin Oriental International wasn't profitable in the last twelve months, it is unlikely we'll see a strong correlation between its share price and its earnings per share (EPS). Arguably revenue is our next best option. When a company doesn't make profits, we'd generally hope to see good revenue growth. That's because it's hard to be confident a company will be sustainable if revenue growth is negligible, and it never makes a profit.

Over three years, Mandarin Oriental International grew revenue at 27% per year. That's well above most other pre-profit companies. While its revenue increased, the share price dropped at a rate of 7% per year. That seems like an unlucky result for holders. It seems likely that actual growth fell short of shareholders' expectations. Before considering a purchase, investors should consider how quickly expenses are growing, relative to revenue.

The graphic below depicts how earnings and revenue have changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

Take a more thorough look at Mandarin Oriental International's financial health with this free report on its balance sheet.

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. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. As it happens, Mandarin Oriental International's TSR for the last 3 years was -20%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. This is largely a result of its dividend payments!

A Different Perspective

Mandarin Oriental International provided a TSR of 10% over the last twelve months. But that return falls short of the market. On the bright side, that's still a gain, and it's actually better than the average return of 0.9% over half a decade This suggests the company might be improving over 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. Even so, be aware that Mandarin Oriental International is showing 1 warning sign in our investment analysis , you should know about...

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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 Singaporean 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.