While Dalian Huarui Heavy Industry Group Co., LTD. (SZSE:002204) shareholders are probably generally happy, the stock hasn't had particularly good run recently, with the share price falling 13% in the last quarter. But that doesn't change the fact that the returns over the last five years have been pleasing. It has returned a market beating 26% in that time. While the long term returns are impressive, we do have some sympathy for those who bought more recently, given the 18% drop, in the last year.

The past week has proven to be lucrative for Dalian Huarui Heavy Industry Group investors, so let's see if fundamentals drove the company's five-year performance.

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 five years of share price growth, Dalian Huarui Heavy Industry Group achieved compound earnings per share (EPS) growth of 29% per year. This EPS growth is higher than the 5% average annual increase in the share price. Therefore, it seems the market has become relatively pessimistic about the company.

The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).

It is of course excellent to see how Dalian Huarui Heavy Industry Group has grown profits over the years, but the future is more important for shareholders. If you are thinking of buying or selling Dalian Huarui Heavy Industry Group 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. In the case of Dalian Huarui Heavy Industry Group, it has a TSR of 31% for the last 5 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!

A Different Perspective

Although it hurts that Dalian Huarui Heavy Industry Group returned a loss of 17% in the last twelve months, the broader market was actually worse, returning a loss of 20%. Longer term investors wouldn't be so upset, since they would have made 5%, each year, over five years. In the best case scenario the last year is just a temporary blip on the journey to a brighter future. 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. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Dalian Huarui Heavy Industry Group that you should be aware of.

But note: Dalian Huarui Heavy Industry Group may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with past earnings growth (and further growth forecast).

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

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com