Even the best stock pickers will make plenty of bad investments. Anyone who held Hoshine Silicon Industry Co., Ltd. (SHSE:603260) over the last year knows what a loser feels like. In that relatively short period, the share price has plunged 52%. At least the damage isn't so bad if you look at the last three years, since the stock is down 2.1% in that time. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 22% in the last 90 days. However, one could argue that the price has been influenced by the general market, which is down 10% in the same timeframe.

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

View our latest analysis for Hoshine Silicon Industry

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. One way to examine how market sentiment has changed over time is to look at the interaction between a company's share price and its earnings per share (EPS).

Unhappily, Hoshine Silicon Industry had to report a 66% decline in EPS over the last year. This fall in the EPS is significantly worse than the 52% the share price fall. So despite the weak per-share profits, some investors are probably relieved the situation wasn't more difficult.

You can see how EPS has changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).

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. Before buying or selling a stock, we always recommend a close examination of historic growth trends, available here..

A Different Perspective

While the broader market lost about 20% in the twelve months, Hoshine Silicon Industry shareholders did even worse, losing 52% (even including dividends). Having said that, it's inevitable that some stocks will be oversold in a falling market. The key is to keep your eyes on the fundamental developments. Longer term investors wouldn't be so upset, since they would have made 6%, each year, over five years. It could be that the recent sell-off is an opportunity, so it may be worth checking the fundamental data for signs of a long term growth trend. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Hoshine Silicon Industry better, we need to consider many other factors. Even so, be aware that Hoshine Silicon Industry is showing 4 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 2 of those are a bit concerning...

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

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.