Can You Imagine How Eternal Materials' (TPE:1717) Shareholders Feel About The 38% Share Price Increase?

The simplest way to invest in stocks is to buy exchange traded funds. But investors can boost returns by picking market-beating companies to own shares in. For example, the Eternal Materials Co., Ltd. (TPE:1717) share price is up 38% in the last year, clearly besting the market return of around 19% (not including dividends). That's a solid performance by our standards! However, the longer term returns haven't been so impressive, with the stock up just 25% in the last three years.

Check out our latest analysis for Eternal Materials

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 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).

Eternal Materials was able to grow EPS by 9.0% in the last twelve months. The share price gain of 38% certainly outpaced the EPS growth. So it's fair to assume the market has a higher opinion of the business than it a year ago.

You can see below how EPS has changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

Dive deeper into Eternal Materials' key metrics by checking this interactive graph of Eternal Materials'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 is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. In the case of Eternal Materials, it has a TSR of 44% for the last year. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

We're pleased to report that Eternal Materials shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 44% over one year. Of course, that includes the dividend. That gain is better than the annual TSR over five years, which is 10%. Therefore it seems like sentiment around the company has been positive lately. Someone with an optimistic perspective could view the recent improvement in TSR as indicating that the business itself is getting better with time. 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. Take risks, for example - Eternal Materials has 3 warning signs (and 1 which is significant) we think you should know about.

If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

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

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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. 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.
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