When we invest, we're generally looking for stocks that outperform the market average. Buying under-rated businesses is one path to excess returns. For example, long term Shenzhen Salubris Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. (SZSE:002294) shareholders have enjoyed a 70% share price rise over the last half decade, well in excess of the market return of around 25% (not including dividends). However, more recent returns haven't been as impressive as that, with the stock returning just 2.3% in the last year, including dividends.

Although Shenzhen Salubris Pharmaceuticals has shed CN¥1.4b from its market cap this week, let's take a look at its longer term fundamental trends and see if they've driven returns.

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

Shenzhen Salubris Pharmaceuticals' earnings per share are down 11% per year, despite strong share price performance over five years.

Essentially, it doesn't seem likely that investors are focused on EPS. 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.

The modest 1.6% dividend yield is unlikely to be propping up the share price. The revenue reduction of 1.2% per year is not a positive. So it seems one might have to take closer look at earnings and revenue trends to see how they might influence the share price.

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

We know that Shenzhen Salubris Pharmaceuticals has improved its bottom line over the last three years, but what does the future have in store? You can see how its balance sheet has strengthened (or weakened) over time in this free interactive graphic.

What About Dividends?

As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. In the case of Shenzhen Salubris Pharmaceuticals, it has a TSR of 84% for the last 5 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

Shenzhen Salubris Pharmaceuticals shareholders gained a total return of 2.3% during the year. But that return falls short of the market. On the bright side, the longer term returns (running at about 13% a year, over half a decade) look better. It may well be that this is a business worth popping on the watching, given the continuing positive reception, over time, from the market. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Shenzhen Salubris Pharmaceuticals better, we need to consider many other factors. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Shenzhen Salubris Pharmaceuticals (1 is potentially serious!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

Of course Shenzhen Salubris Pharmaceuticals 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.