Crystal International Group Limited (HKG:2232) shareholders should be happy to see the share price up 16% in the last quarter. But that doesn't help the fact that the three year return is less impressive. After all, the share price is down 14% in the last three years, significantly under-performing the market.

While the stock has risen 4.8% in the past week but long term shareholders are still in the red, let's see what the fundamentals can tell us.

View our latest analysis for Crystal International Group

While the efficient markets hypothesis continues to be taught by some, it has been proven that markets are over-reactive dynamic systems, and investors are not always rational. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement.

Although the share price is down over three years, Crystal International Group actually managed to grow EPS by 2.9% per year in that time. Given the share price reaction, one might suspect that EPS is not a good guide to the business performance during the period (perhaps due to a one-off loss or gain). Or else the company was over-hyped in the past, and so its growth has disappointed.

Given that EPS is up and the share price is down, it seems clear the market is less excited about the business than it was. Having said that, if the EPS gains continue we'd expect the share price to improve, longer term.

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

We know that Crystal International Group has improved its bottom line lately, but is it going to grow revenue? This free report showing analyst revenue forecasts should help you figure out if the EPS growth can be sustained.

What About Dividends?

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. In the case of Crystal International Group, it has a TSR of -1.1% for the last 3 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

We can sympathize with Crystal International Group about their 8.6% loss for the year ( including dividends), but the silver lining is that the broader market return was worse, at around -23%. The loss over the last year is steeper than the loss of 0.4% per year over three years. Whilst Baron Rothschild does say to "buy when there's blood in the streets, even if the blood is your own", buyers would need to examine the data carefully to be comfortable that the business itself is sound. 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 Crystal International Group you should know about.

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

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