The most you can lose on any stock (assuming you don't use leverage) is 100% of your money. But on the bright side, you can make far more than 100% on a really good stock. For instance, the price of AdEPT Telecom plc (LON:ADT) stock is up an impressive 201% over the last five years. It's down 2.2% in the last seven days.
See our latest analysis for AdEPT Telecom
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.
Over half a decade, AdEPT Telecom managed to grow its earnings per share at 5.0% a year. This EPS growth is slower than the share price growth of 25% per year, over the same period. This suggests that market participants hold the company in higher regard, these days. And that's hardly shocking given the track record of growth. This favorable sentiment is reflected in its (fairly optimistic) P/E ratio of 46.08.
The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).
Dive deeper into AdEPT Telecom's key metrics by checking this interactive graph of AdEPT Telecom's earnings, revenue and cash flow.
What About Dividends?
As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). 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. As it happens, AdEPT Telecom's TSR for the last 5 years was 242%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. This is largely a result of its dividend payments!
A Different Perspective
We're pleased to report that AdEPT Telecom shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 1.8% over one year. That's including the dividend. However, the TSR over five years, coming in at 28% per year, is even more impressive. Potential buyers might understandably feel they've missed the opportunity, but it's always possible business is still firing on all cylinders. Before deciding if you like the current share price, check how AdEPT Telecom scores on these 3 valuation metrics.
If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).