We think that it's fair to say that the possibility of finding fantastic multi-year winners is what motivates many investors. You won't get it right every time, but when you do, the returns can be truly splendid. One bright shining star stock has been Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE:STNG), which is 383% higher than three years ago. Better yet, the share price has risen 3.4% in the last week. But this could be related to the buoyant market which is up about 2.6% in a week.

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

There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect 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).

During three years of share price growth, Scorpio Tankers moved from a loss to profitability. Given the importance of this milestone, it's not overly surprising that the share price has increased strongly.

The image below shows how EPS has tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

It is of course excellent to see how Scorpio Tankers has grown profits over the years, but the future is more important for shareholders. This free interactive report on Scorpio Tankers' balance sheet strength is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

What About Dividends?

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. 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. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. We note that for Scorpio Tankers the TSR over the last 3 years was 412%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

It's good to see that Scorpio Tankers has rewarded shareholders with a total shareholder return of 51% in the last twelve months. Of course, that includes the dividend. Since the one-year TSR is better than the five-year TSR (the latter coming in at 27% per year), it would seem that the stock's performance has improved in recent times. Given the share price momentum remains strong, it might be worth taking a closer look at the stock, lest you miss an opportunity. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Scorpio Tankers better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks, for example - Scorpio Tankers has 2 warning signs (and 1 which makes us a bit uncomfortable) we think you should know about.

For those who like to find winning investments this free list of undervalued 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.