It's normal to be annoyed when stock you own has a declining share price. But sometimes broader market conditions have more of an impact on prices than the actual business performance. Over the year the HCW Biologics Inc. (NASDAQ:HCWB) share price fell 18%. However, that's better than the market's overall decline of 22%. Because HCW Biologics hasn't been listed for many years, the market is still learning about how the business performs. The falls have accelerated recently, with the share price down 16% in the last three months.

Now let's have a look at the company's fundamentals, and see if the long term shareholder return has matched the performance of the underlying business.

View our latest analysis for HCW Biologics

Because HCW Biologics made a loss in the last twelve months, we think the market is probably more focussed on revenue and revenue growth, at least for now. Generally speaking, companies without profits are expected to grow revenue every year, and at a good clip. As you can imagine, fast revenue growth, when maintained, often leads to fast profit growth.

In the last twelve months, HCW Biologics increased its revenue by 31%. That's definitely a respectable growth rate. Considering the limp overall market, the share price loss of 18% over the year isn't too bad. We'd venture the revenue growth helped inspire some faith from holders. So growth investors might like to put this one on the watchlist to see if revenue keeps trending in the right direction.

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

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. If you are thinking of buying or selling HCW Biologics stock, you should check out this free report showing analyst profit forecasts.

A Different Perspective

While they no doubt would have preferred make a profit, at least HCW Biologics shareholders didn't do too badly in the last year. Their loss of 18%, actually beat the broader market, which lost around 22%. The falls have continued up until the last quarter, with the share price down 16% in that time. Momentum traders would generally avoid a stock if the share price is in a downtrend. We prefer keep an eye on the trends in business metrics like revenue or EPS. 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. Take risks, for example - HCW Biologics has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

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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