Statistically speaking, long term investing is a profitable endeavour. But that doesn't mean long term investors can avoid big losses. For example the Guangdong Zhengye Technology Co., Ltd. (SZSE:300410) share price dropped 51% over five years. That's an unpleasant experience for long term holders. And we doubt long term believers are the only worried holders, since the stock price has declined 37% over the last twelve months. The falls have accelerated recently, with the share price down 30% in the last three months.

If the past week is anything to go by, investor sentiment for Guangdong Zhengye Technology isn't positive, so let's see if there's a mismatch between fundamentals and the share price.

Guangdong Zhengye Technology isn't currently profitable, so most analysts would look to revenue growth to get an idea of how fast the underlying business is growing. Generally speaking, companies without profits are expected to grow revenue every year, and at a good clip. That's because fast revenue growth can be easily extrapolated to forecast profits, often of considerable size.

Over half a decade Guangdong Zhengye Technology reduced its trailing twelve month revenue by 7.0% for each year. While far from catastrophic that is not good. The share price decline of 9% compound, over five years, is understandable given the company is losing money, and revenue is moving in the wrong direction. We don't think anyone is rushing to buy this stock. Not that many investors like to invest in companies that are losing money and not growing revenue.

You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

We're pleased to report that the CEO is remunerated more modestly than most CEOs at similarly capitalized companies. But while CEO remuneration is always worth checking, the really important question is whether the company can grow earnings going forward. Dive deeper into the earnings by checking this interactive graph of Guangdong Zhengye Technology's earnings, revenue and cash flow.

A Different Perspective

We regret to report that Guangdong Zhengye Technology shareholders are down 37% for the year. Unfortunately, that's worse than the broader market decline of 20%. However, it could simply be that the share price has been impacted by broader market jitters. It might be worth keeping an eye on the fundamentals, in case there's a good opportunity. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 9% 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. 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. For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Guangdong Zhengye Technology that you should be aware of before investing here.

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 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.