Investors in Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) have unfortunately lost 68% over the last year

Even the best stock pickers will make plenty of bad investments. Unfortunately, shareholders of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) have suffered share price declines over the last year. To wit the share price is down 68% in that time. Because Match Group hasn't been listed for many years, the market is still learning about how the business performs. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 30% in the last 90 days.

It's worthwhile assessing if the company's economics have been moving in lockstep with these underwhelming shareholder returns, or if there is some disparity between the two. So let's do just that.

See our latest analysis for Match Group

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.

Unfortunately Match Group reported an EPS drop of 83% for the last year. The share price fall of 68% isn't as bad as the reduction in earnings per share. So the market may not be too worried about the EPS figure, at the moment -- or it may have expected earnings to drop faster. With a P/E ratio of 123.52, it's fair to say the market sees an EPS rebound on the cards.

The graphic below depicts how EPS has changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

It's good to see that there was some significant insider buying in the last three months. That's a positive. On the other hand, we think the revenue and earnings trends are much more meaningful measures of the business. It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on Match Group's earnings, revenue and cash flow.

A Different Perspective

Match Group shareholders are down 68% for the year, even worse than the market loss of 19%. That's disappointing, but it's worth keeping in mind that the market-wide selling wouldn't have helped. With the stock down 30% over the last three months, the market doesn't seem to believe that the company has solved all its problems. Basically, most investors should be wary of buying into a poor-performing stock, unless the business itself has clearly improved. 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. For example, we've discovered 5 warning signs for Match Group (2 shouldn't be ignored!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

Match Group is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with 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. 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.