Generally speaking long term investing is the way to go. But no-one is immune from buying too high. For example, after five long years the Overseas Education Limited (SGX:RQ1) share price is a whole 62% lower. We certainly feel for shareholders who bought near the top.
Check out our latest analysis for Overseas Education
There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect underlying business performance. 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 Overseas Education’s share price and EPS declined; the latter at a rate of 22% per year. This fall in the EPS is worse than the 18% compound annual share price fall. So the market may previously have expected a drop, or else it expects the situation will improve.
You can see how EPS has changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).
This free interactive report on Overseas Education’s earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.
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. We note that for Overseas Education the TSR over the last 5 years was -51%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.
A Different Perspective
While the broader market lost about 2.5% in the twelve months, Overseas Education shareholders did even worse, losing 7.1% (even including dividends). However, it could simply be that the share price has been impacted by broader market jitters. It might be worth keeping an eye on the fundamentals, in case there’s a good opportunity. Unfortunately, longer term shareholders are suffering worse, given the loss of 13% doled out over the last five years. We’d need to see some sustained improvements in the key metrics before we could muster much enthusiasm. Keeping this in mind, a solid next step might be to take a look at Overseas Education’s dividend track record. This free interactive graph is a great place to start.
Of course Overseas Education 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 SG exchanges.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.