By buying an index fund, you can roughly match the market return with ease. But many of us dare to dream of bigger returns, and build a portfolio ourselves. Just take a look at Hunan HuashengCO.,Ltd (SHSE:600156), which is up 54%, over three years, soundly beating the market decline of 29% (not including dividends). On the other hand, the returns haven't been quite so good recently, with shareholders up just 22%.

Since it's been a strong week for Hunan HuashengCO.Ltd shareholders, let's have a look at trend of the longer term fundamentals.

View our latest analysis for Hunan HuashengCO.Ltd

Given that Hunan HuashengCO.Ltd didn't make a profit in the last twelve months, we'll focus on revenue growth to form a quick view of its business development. 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.

Hunan HuashengCO.Ltd actually saw its revenue drop by 5.9% per year over three years. The revenue growth might be lacking but the share price has gained 16% each year in that time. Unless the company is going to make profits soon, we would be pretty cautious about it.

The company's revenue and earnings (over time) are depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).

You can see how its balance sheet has strengthened (or weakened) over time in this free interactive graphic.

A Different Perspective

We're pleased to report that Hunan HuashengCO.Ltd shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 22% over one year. Since the one-year TSR is better than the five-year TSR (the latter coming in at 6% per year), it would seem that the stock's performance has improved in recent times. Someone with an optimistic perspective could view the recent improvement in TSR as indicating that the business itself is getting better with time. 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 - Hunan HuashengCO.Ltd has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.

We will like Hunan HuashengCO.Ltd better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying.

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

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