While shareholders of Union Insurance (TWSE:2816) are in the black over 1 year, those who bought a week ago aren't so fortunate

It hasn't been the best quarter for Union Insurance Co., Ltd. (TWSE:2816) shareholders, since the share price has fallen 21% in that time. On the other hand, over the last twelve months the stock has delivered rather impressive returns. Indeed, the share price is up an impressive 105% in that time. So it may be that the share price is simply cooling off after a strong rise. The real question is whether the business is trending in the right direction.

While this past week has detracted from the company's one-year return, let's look at the recent trends of the underlying business and see if the gains have been in alignment.

Check out our latest analysis for Union Insurance

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. 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.

During the last year Union Insurance grew its earnings per share, moving from a loss to a profit.

When a company is just on the edge of profitability it can be well worth considering other metrics in order to more precisely gauge growth (and therefore understand share price movements).

However the year on year revenue growth of 23% would help. Many businesses do go through a phase where they have to forgo some profits to drive business development, and sometimes its for the best.

You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

Take a more thorough look at Union Insurance's financial health with this free report on its balance sheet.

A Different Perspective

We're pleased to report that Union Insurance shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 105% over one year. And that does include the dividend. That's better than the annualised return of 14% over half a decade, implying that the company is doing better recently. Given the share price momentum remains strong, it might be worth taking a closer look at the stock, lest you miss an opportunity. 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 Union Insurance is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those is a bit unpleasant...

For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

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