If you love investing in stocks you're bound to buy some losers. But the last three years have been particularly tough on longer term Guangzhou Shiyuan Electronic Technology Company Limited (SZSE:002841) shareholders. Sadly for them, the share price is down 58% in that time. And over the last year the share price fell 26%, so we doubt many shareholders are delighted. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 14% in the last 90 days.

Since shareholders are down over the longer term, lets look at the underlying fundamentals over the that time and see if they've been consistent with returns.

See our latest analysis for Guangzhou Shiyuan Electronic Technology

There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect underlying business performance. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement.

During the three years that the share price fell, Guangzhou Shiyuan Electronic Technology's earnings per share (EPS) dropped by 3.8% each year. The share price decline of 25% is actually steeper than the EPS slippage. So it seems the market was too confident about the business, in the past.

The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).

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 Guangzhou Shiyuan Electronic Technology's earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

A Different Perspective

We regret to report that Guangzhou Shiyuan Electronic Technology shareholders are down 25% for the year (even including dividends). Unfortunately, that's worse than the broader market decline of 3.9%. 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. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 4% per year over five years. 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. 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. To that end, you should learn about the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Guangzhou Shiyuan Electronic Technology (including 1 which is concerning) .

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.