CNOOC Energy Technology & Services Limited (SHSE:600968) shareholders should be happy to see the share price up 15% in the last month. 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 3.6% in the past week but long term shareholders are still in the red, let's see what the fundamentals can tell us.

See our latest analysis for CNOOC Energy Technology & Services

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...' 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.

During the unfortunate three years of share price decline, CNOOC Energy Technology & Services actually saw its earnings per share (EPS) improve by 4.6% per year. This is quite a puzzle, and suggests there might be something temporarily buoying the share price. Or else the company was over-hyped in the past, and so its growth has disappointed.

After considering the numbers, we'd posit that the the market had higher expectations of EPS growth, three years back. But it's possible a look at other metrics will be enlightening.

The modest 1.9% dividend yield is unlikely to be guiding the market view of the stock. We note that, in three years, revenue has actually grown at a 9.6% annual rate, so that doesn't seem to be a reason to sell shares. It's probably worth investigating CNOOC Energy Technology & Services further; while we may be missing something on this analysis, there might also be an opportunity.

The image below shows how earnings and revenue have tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

If you are thinking of buying or selling CNOOC Energy Technology & Services stock, you should check out this FREE detailed report on its balance sheet.

What About Dividends?

As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). The TSR is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. We note that for CNOOC Energy Technology & Services the TSR over the last 3 years was -9.6%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

CNOOC Energy Technology & Services shareholders may not have made money over the last year, but their total loss of 1.6% ( including dividends) isn't as bad as the market loss of around 1.6%. The one-year return is also not as bad as the 3.1% per annum loss investors have suffered over the last three years. It could well be that the business has begun to stabilize, though the recent returns are hardly impressive. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand CNOOC Energy Technology & Services better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks, for example - CNOOC Energy Technology & Services has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.

Of course CNOOC Energy Technology & Services may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of growth stocks.

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