Passive investing in an index fund is a good way to ensure your own returns roughly match the overall market. Active investors aim to buy stocks that vastly outperform the market - but in the process, they risk under-performance. That downside risk was realized by C C Land Holdings Limited (HKG:1224) shareholders over the last year, as the share price declined 37%. That's disappointing when you consider the market returned 11%. Even if you look out three years, the returns are still disappointing, with the share price down34% in that time. Furthermore, it's down 23% in about a quarter. That's not much fun for holders.

After losing 11% this past week, it's worth investigating the company's fundamentals to see what we can infer from past performance.

View our latest analysis for C C Land Holdings

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

C C Land Holdings fell to a loss making position during the year. Some investors no doubt dumped the stock as a result. Of course, if the company can turn the situation around, investors will likely profit.

You can see below how EPS has changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

We consider it positive that insiders have made significant purchases in the last year. Having said that, most people consider earnings and revenue growth trends to be a more meaningful guide to the business. This free interactive report on C C Land Holdings' earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

A Different Perspective

C C Land Holdings shareholders are down 36% for the year (even including dividends), but the market itself is up 11%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 6% over the last half decade. 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. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand C C Land Holdings better, we need to consider many other factors. Case in point: We've spotted 2 warning signs for C C Land Holdings you should be aware of.

C C Land Holdings 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 Hong Kong 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.