It is doubtless a positive to see that the Feitian Technologies Co., Ltd. (SZSE:300386) share price has gained some 52% in the last three months. But that doesn't change the fact that the returns over the last three years haven't been great. Specifically, the stock price is down 36% whereas the market is down , having returned (-33%).

While the last three years has been tough for Feitian Technologies shareholders, this past week has shown signs of promise. So let's look at the longer term fundamentals and see if they've been the driver of the negative returns.

Because Feitian Technologies 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. Shareholders of unprofitable companies usually desire strong revenue growth. As you can imagine, fast revenue growth, when maintained, often leads to fast profit growth.

In the last three years Feitian Technologies saw its revenue shrink by 4.9% per year. That is not a good result. The annual decline of 11% per year in that period has clearly disappointed holders. That makes sense given the lack of either profits or revenue growth. However, in this kind of situation you can sometimes find opportunity, where sentiment is negative but the company is actually making good progress.

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

It's probably worth noting that the CEO is paid less than the median at similar sized companies. But while CEO remuneration is always worth checking, the really important question is whether the company can grow earnings going forward. This free interactive report on Feitian Technologies' earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

A Different Perspective

While it's never nice to take a loss, Feitian Technologies shareholders can take comfort that their trailing twelve month loss of 14% wasn't as bad as the market loss of around 19%. Given the total loss of 5% per year over five years, it seems returns have deteriorated in the last twelve months. Whilst Baron Rothschild does tell the investor "buy when there's blood in the streets, even if the blood is your own", buyers would need to examine the data carefully to be comfortable that the business itself is sound. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Feitian Technologies better, we need to consider many other factors. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Feitian Technologies that you should be aware of before investing here.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of companies we expect will grow earnings.

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.