Further weakness as Emerald Holding (NYSE:EEX) drops 5.2% this week, taking five-year losses to 53%

Generally speaking long term investing is the way to go. But no-one is immune from buying too high. For example the Emerald Holding, Inc. (NYSE:EEX) share price dropped 54% over five years. That's an unpleasant experience for long term holders. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 12% in the last 90 days.

With the stock having lost 5.2% in the past week, it's worth taking a look at business performance and seeing if there's any red flags.

Check out our latest analysis for Emerald Holding

Emerald Holding isn't currently profitable, so most analysts would look to revenue growth to get an idea of how fast the underlying business is growing. When a company doesn't make profits, we'd generally hope to see good revenue growth. That's because fast revenue growth can be easily extrapolated to forecast profits, often of considerable size.

Over five years, Emerald Holding grew its revenue at 14% per year. That's a fairly respectable growth rate. The share price, meanwhile, has fallen 9% compounded, over five years. That suggests the market is disappointed with the current growth rate. A pessimistic market can create opportunities.

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

Balance sheet strength is crucial. It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on how its financial position has changed over time.

A Different Perspective

While the broader market gained around 31% in the last year, Emerald Holding shareholders lost 13% (even including dividends). However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. However, the loss over the last year isn't as bad as the 9% per annum loss investors have suffered over the last half decade. We would want clear information suggesting the company will grow, before taking the view that the share price will stabilize. 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. Take risks, for example - Emerald Holding has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of companies that have proven they can grow earnings.

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.