Volatility 101: Should Profire Energy (NASDAQ:PFIE) Shares Have Dropped 49%?

The simplest way to benefit from a rising market is to buy an index fund. Active investors aim to buy stocks that vastly outperform the market - but in the process, they risk under-performance. That downside risk was realized by Profire Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFIE) shareholders over the last year, as the share price declined 49%. That contrasts poorly with the market return of 12%. Even if you look out three years, the returns are still disappointing, with the share price down45% in that time. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 38% in the last 90 days. This could be related to the recent financial results - you can catch up on the most recent data by reading our company report.

Check out our latest analysis for Profire Energy

To quote Buffett, 'Ships will sail around the world but the Flat Earth Society will flourish. There will continue to be wide discrepancies between price and value in the marketplace...' By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.

Profire Energy fell to a loss making position during the year. Some investors no doubt dumped the stock as a result. We hope for shareholders' sake that the company becomes profitable again soon.

The image below shows how EPS has tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

This free interactive report on Profire Energy's earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

A Different Perspective

Investors in Profire Energy had a tough year, with a total loss of 49%, against a market gain of about 12%. 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 10% 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. 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. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Profire Energy you should know about.

We will like Profire Energy 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 US 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. Thank you for reading.