We think intelligent long term investing is the way to go. But along the way some stocks are going to perform badly. For example, after five long years the Yunda Holding Group Co., Ltd. (SZSE:002120) share price is a whole 70% lower. That's an unpleasant experience for long term holders. The falls have accelerated recently, with the share price down 15% in the last three months.

Since Yunda Holding Group has shed CN¥752m from its value in the past 7 days, let's see if the longer term decline has been driven by the business' economics.

To quote Buffett, 'Ships will sail around the world but the Flat Earth Society will flourish. There will continue to be wide discrepancies between price and value in the marketplace...' By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.

During the five years over which the share price declined, Yunda Holding Group's earnings per share (EPS) dropped by 6.8% each year. This reduction in EPS is less than the 21% annual reduction in the share price. So it seems the market was too confident about the business, in the past. The less favorable sentiment is reflected in its current P/E ratio of 11.64.

The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).

It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on Yunda Holding Group's earnings, revenue and cash flow.

A Different Perspective

Yunda Holding Group shareholders gained a total return of 5.1% during the year. Unfortunately this falls short of the market return. But at least that's still a gain! Over five years the TSR has been a reduction of 11% per year, over five years. It could well be that the business is stabilizing. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Yunda Holding Group better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Yunda Holding Group .

But note: Yunda Holding Group may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with past earnings growth (and further growth forecast).

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.