It's understandable if you feel frustrated when a stock you own sees a lower share price. But sometimes broader market conditions have more of an impact on prices than the actual business performance. The Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance, Inc. (NASDAQ:REFI) is down 11% over a year, but the total shareholder return is 1.5% once you include the dividend. That's better than the market which declined 22% over the last year. Because Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance hasn't been listed for many years, the market is still learning about how the business performs.

With that in mind, it's worth seeing if the company's underlying fundamentals have been the driver of long term performance, or if there are some discrepancies.

See our latest analysis for Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance

In his essay The Superinvestors of Graham-and-Doddsville Warren Buffett described how share prices do not always rationally reflect the value of a business. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.

What About Dividends?

When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. 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. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. As it happens, Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance's TSR for the last 1 year was 1.5%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!

A Different Perspective

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance boasts a total shareholder return of 1.5% for the last year (that includes the dividends) . And the share price momentum remains respectable, with a gain of 2.7% in the last three months. This suggests the company is continuing to win over new investors. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance .

Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

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

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