Zhejiang Kingland Pipeline and Technologies Co.,Ltd. (SZSE:002443) shareholders should be happy to see the share price up 18% in the last month. But that is minimal compensation for the share price under-performance over the last year. The cold reality is that the stock has dropped 12% in one year, under-performing the market.

On a more encouraging note the company has added CN¥401m to its market cap in just the last 7 days, so let's see if we can determine what's driven the one-year loss for shareholders.

There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect underlying business performance. One flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price.

Even though the Zhejiang Kingland Pipeline and TechnologiesLtd share price is down over the year, its EPS actually improved. It's quite possible that growth expectations may have been unreasonable in the past.

It seems quite likely that the market was expecting higher growth from the stock. But other metrics might shed some light on why the share price is down.

With a low yield of 1.0% we doubt that the dividend influences the share price much. On the other hand, we're certainly perturbed by the 12% decline in Zhejiang Kingland Pipeline and TechnologiesLtd's revenue. If the market sees the weak revenue as jeopardising EPS, that could explain the lower share price.

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

This free interactive report on Zhejiang Kingland Pipeline and TechnologiesLtd's balance sheet strength is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

A Different Perspective

While the broader market gained around 3.3% in the last year, Zhejiang Kingland Pipeline and TechnologiesLtd shareholders lost 11% (even including dividends). However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. On the bright side, long term shareholders have made money, with a gain of 0.9% per year over half a decade. If the fundamental data continues to indicate long term sustainable growth, the current sell-off could be an opportunity worth considering. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Zhejiang Kingland Pipeline and TechnologiesLtd better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks, for example - Zhejiang Kingland Pipeline and TechnologiesLtd has 2 warning signs (and 1 which can't be ignored) we think you should know about.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of companies that have proven they can 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.