COSCO SHIPPING International (Singapore) (SGX:F83) shareholders have endured a 66% loss from investing in the stock five years ago

Statistically speaking, long term investing is a profitable endeavour. But no-one is immune from buying too high. Zooming in on an example, the COSCO SHIPPING International (Singapore) Co., Ltd. (SGX:F83) share price dropped 66% in the last half decade. That's an unpleasant experience for long term holders. And it's not just long term holders hurting, because the stock is down 26% in the last year. Furthermore, it's down 19% in about a quarter. That's not much fun for holders. However, one could argue that the price has been influenced by the general market, which is down 8.1% in the same timeframe.

So let's have a look and see if the longer term performance of the company has been in line with the underlying business' progress.

See our latest analysis for COSCO SHIPPING International (Singapore)

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 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).

Over five years COSCO SHIPPING International (Singapore)'s earnings per share dropped significantly, falling to a loss, with the share price also lower. This was, in part, due to extraordinary items impacting earnings. Since the company has fallen to a loss making position, it's hard to compare the change in EPS with the share price change. However, we can say we'd expect to see a falling share price in this scenario.

You can see below how EPS has changed over time (discover 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.

A Different Perspective

Investors in COSCO SHIPPING International (Singapore) had a tough year, with a total loss of 26%, against a market gain of about 0.9%. Even the share prices of good stocks drop sometimes, but we want to see improvements in the fundamental metrics of a business, before getting too interested. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 11% per year over five years. Generally speaking long term share price weakness can be a bad sign, though contrarian investors might want to research the stock in hope of a turnaround. 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. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for COSCO SHIPPING International (Singapore) that you should be aware of.

We will like COSCO SHIPPING International (Singapore) better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies 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 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.