It's easy to feel disappointed if you buy a stock that goes down. But sometimes broader market conditions have more of an impact on prices than the actual business performance. So while the Shenzhen Kingkey Smart Agriculture Times Co.,Ltd (SZSE:000048) share price is down 18% in the last year, the total return to shareholders (which includes dividends) was -14%. And that total return actually beats the market decline of 16%. Longer term shareholders haven't suffered as badly, since the stock is down a comparatively less painful 14% in three years. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 13% in the last 90 days.

If the past week is anything to go by, investor sentiment for Shenzhen Kingkey Smart Agriculture TimesLtd isn't positive, so let's see if there's a mismatch between fundamentals and the share price.

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 last year Shenzhen Kingkey Smart Agriculture TimesLtd grew its earnings per share, moving from a loss to a profit.

Earnings per share growth rates aren't particularly useful for comparing with the share price, when a company has moved from loss to profit. So it makes sense to check out some other factors.

The fact that the dividend has fallen is probably weighing on the share price, as it implies some form of business stress.

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

We know that Shenzhen Kingkey Smart Agriculture TimesLtd has improved its bottom line lately, but what does the future have in store? If you are thinking of buying or selling Shenzhen Kingkey Smart Agriculture TimesLtd stock, you should check out this free report showing analyst profit forecasts.

What About Dividends?

When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. The TSR incorporates the value of any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings, along with any dividends, based on the assumption that the dividends are reinvested. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. We note that for Shenzhen Kingkey Smart Agriculture TimesLtd the TSR over the last 1 year was -14%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!

A Different Perspective

Although it hurts that Shenzhen Kingkey Smart Agriculture TimesLtd returned a loss of 14% in the last twelve months, the broader market was actually worse, returning a loss of 16%. Longer term investors wouldn't be so upset, since they would have made 7%, each year, over five years. In the best case scenario the last year is just a temporary blip on the journey to a brighter future. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Shenzhen Kingkey Smart Agriculture TimesLtd better, we need to consider many other factors. Even so, be aware that Shenzhen Kingkey Smart Agriculture TimesLtd is showing 4 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 3 of those are a bit unpleasant...

Of course Shenzhen Kingkey Smart Agriculture TimesLtd may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of growth stocks.

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.