The one-year shareholder returns and company earnings persist lower as Zynex (NASDAQ:ZYXI) stock falls a further 15% in past week

Even the best investor on earth makes unsuccessful investments. But it should be a priority to avoid stomach churning catastrophes, wherever possible. It must have been painful to be a Zynex, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZYXI) shareholder over the last year, since the stock price plummeted 83% in that time. That'd be enough to make even the strongest stomachs churn. We note that it has not been easy for shareholders over three years, either; the share price is down 69% in that time. Furthermore, it's down 74% in about a quarter. That's not much fun for holders. We really hope anyone holding through that price crash has a diversified portfolio. Even when you lose money, you don't have to lose the lesson.

After losing 15% this past week, it's worth investigating the company's fundamentals to see what we can infer from past performance.

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There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect underlying business performance. 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).

Unhappily, Zynex had to report a 66% decline in EPS over the last year. The share price decline of 83% is actually more than the EPS drop. This suggests the EPS fall has made some shareholders more nervous about the business.

You can see how EPS has changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).

Before buying or selling a stock, we always recommend a close examination of historic growth trends, available here .

A Different Perspective

We regret to report that Zynex shareholders are down 83% for the year. Unfortunately, that's worse than the broader market decline of 4.5%. However, it could simply be that the share price has been impacted by broader market jitters. It might be worth keeping an eye on the fundamentals, in case there's a good opportunity. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 13% per year over five years. 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. For example, we've discovered 4 warning signs for Zynex (2 are significant!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

We will like Zynex better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of undervalued stocks (mostly small caps) 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 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.