Further weakness as Alta Equipment Group (NYSE:ALTG) drops 19% this week, taking one-year losses to 68%

Even the best stock pickers will make plenty of bad investments. Anyone who held Alta Equipment Group Inc. (NYSE:ALTG) over the last year knows what a loser feels like. To wit the share price is down 69% in that time. To make matters worse, the returns over three years have also been really disappointing (the share price is 69% lower than three years ago). Furthermore, it's down 41% in about a quarter. That's not much fun for holders.

If the past week is anything to go by, investor sentiment for Alta Equipment Group isn't positive, so let's see if there's a mismatch between fundamentals and the share price.

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Given that Alta Equipment Group didn't make a profit in the last twelve months, we'll focus on revenue growth to form a quick view of its business development. Shareholders of unprofitable companies usually desire strong revenue growth. That's because fast revenue growth can be easily extrapolated to forecast profits, often of considerable size.

In just one year Alta Equipment Group saw its revenue fall by 0.01%. That looks pretty grim, at a glance. In the absence of profits, it's not unreasonable that the share price fell 69%. Fingers crossed this is the low ebb for the stock. We don't generally like to own companies with falling revenues and no profits, so we're pretty cautious of this one, at the moment.

You can see how earnings and revenue have changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).

Take a more thorough look at Alta Equipment Group's financial health with this free report on its balance sheet .

A Different Perspective

Investors in Alta Equipment Group had a tough year, with a total loss of 68% (including dividends), against a market gain of about 4.8%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 3% over the last half decade. We realise that Baron Rothschild has said investors should "buy when there is blood on the streets", but we caution that investors should first be sure they are buying a high quality business. 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. To that end, you should learn about the 3 warning signs we've spotted with Alta Equipment Group (including 1 which is concerning) .

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