Optimism for Global Lighting Technologies (TWSE:4935) has grown this past week, despite one-year decline in earnings

On average, over time, stock markets tend to rise higher. This makes investing attractive. But if you choose that path, you're going to buy some stocks that fall short of the market. Unfortunately for shareholders, while the Global Lighting Technologies Inc. (TWSE:4935) share price is up 28% in the last year, that falls short of the market return. Zooming out, the stock is actually down 17% in the last three years.

Since it's been a strong week for Global Lighting Technologies shareholders, let's have a look at trend of the longer term fundamentals.

View our latest analysis for Global Lighting Technologies

While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. 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.

Over the last twelve months, Global Lighting Technologies actually shrank its EPS by 44%.

Given the share price gain, we doubt the market is measuring progress with EPS. Since the change in EPS doesn't seem to correlate with the change in share price, it's worth taking a look at other metrics.

Unfortunately Global Lighting Technologies' fell 24% over twelve months. So the fundamental metrics don't provide an obvious explanation for the share price gain.

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 Global Lighting Technologies' financial health with this free report on its balance sheet.

What About Dividends?

When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. 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 Global Lighting Technologies, it has a TSR of 31% for the last 1 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

Global Lighting Technologies provided a TSR of 31% over the year (including dividends). That's fairly close to the broader market return. Most would be happy with a gain, and it helps that the year's return is actually better than the average return over five years, which was 1.4%. It is possible that management foresight will bring growth well into the future, even if the share price slows down. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Global Lighting Technologies better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks, for example - Global Lighting Technologies has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.

Of course Global Lighting Technologies 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 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.