By buying an index fund, you can roughly match the market return with ease. But if you choose individual stocks with prowess, you can make superior returns. For example, Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated (NYSE:JLL) shareholders have seen the share price rise 28% over three years, well in excess of the market return (13%, not including dividends). On the other hand, the returns haven't been quite so good recently, with shareholders up just 9.6%.

The past week has proven to be lucrative for Jones Lang LaSalle investors, so let's see if fundamentals drove the company's three-year performance.

While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. 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).

Over the last three years, Jones Lang LaSalle failed to grow earnings per share, which fell 17% (annualized).

Thus, it seems unlikely that the market is focussed on EPS growth at the moment. Since the change in EPS doesn't seem to correlate with the change in share price, it's worth taking a look at other metrics.

It may well be that Jones Lang LaSalle revenue growth rate of 20% over three years has convinced shareholders to believe in a brighter future. If the company is being managed for the long term good, today's shareholders might be right to hold on.

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

If you are thinking of buying or selling Jones Lang LaSalle stock, you should check out this FREE detailed report on its balance sheet.

A Different Perspective

Jones Lang LaSalle shareholders are up 9.6% for the year. But that was short of the market average. The silver lining is that the gain was actually better than the average annual return of 3% per year over five year. This suggests the company might be improving over time. 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. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Jones Lang LaSalle you should know about.

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 American 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.