It's not a secret that every investor will make bad investments, from time to time. But it's not unreasonable to try to avoid truly shocking capital losses. So spare a thought for the long term shareholders of Smart Parking Limited (ASX:SPZ); the share price is down a whopping 78% in the last twelve months. While some investors are willing to stomach this sort of loss, they are usually professionals who spread their bets thinly. We note that it has not been easy for shareholders over three years, either; the share price is down 62% in that time. Furthermore, it's down 12% in about a quarter. That's not much fun for holders.

See our latest analysis for Smart Parking

Smart Parking isn't currently profitable, so most analysts would look to revenue growth to get an idea of how fast the underlying business is growing. Shareholders of unprofitable companies usually expect strong revenue growth. Some companies are willing to postpone profitability to grow revenue faster, but in that case one does expect good top-line growth.

Smart Parking's revenue didn't grow at all in the last year. In fact, it fell 0.5%. That looks pretty grim, at a glance. The share price fall of 78% in a year tells the story. That's a stern reminder that profitless companies need to grow the top line, at the very least. But markets do over-react, so there opportunity for investors who are willing to take the time to dig deeper and understand the business.

The graphic below shows how revenue and earnings have changed as management guided the business forward. If you want to see cashflow, you can click on the chart.

Take a more thorough look at Smart Parking's financial health with this free report on its balance sheet.

What about the Total Shareholder Return (TSR)?

We've already covered Smart Parking's share price action, but we should also mention its total shareholder return (TSR). The TSR is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. Smart Parking hasn't been paying dividends, but its TSR of -78% exceeds its share price return of -78%, implying it has either spun-off a business, or raised capital at a discount; thereby providing additional value to shareholders.

A Different Perspective

Smart Parking shareholders are down 78% for the year, but the market itself is up 12%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 6.6% over the last half decade. Generally speaking long term share price weakness can be a bad sign, though contrarian investors might want to research the stock in hope of a turnaround. You might want to assess this data-rich visualization of its earnings, revenue and cash flow.