The simplest way to benefit from a rising market is to buy an index fund. Active investors aim to buy stocks that vastly outperform the market - but in the process, they risk under-performance. For example, the Acconeer AB (publ) (STO:ACCON) share price is down 24% in the last year. That's well bellow the market return of 28%. Acconeer may have better days ahead, of course; we've only looked at a one year period. It's up 1.6% in the last seven days.

Check out our latest analysis for Acconeer

Acconeer recorded just kr4,135,821 in revenue over the last twelve months, which isn't really enough for us to consider it to have a proven product. We can't help wondering why it's publicly listed so early in its journey. Are venture capitalists not interested? As a result, we think it's unlikely shareholders are paying much attention to current revenue, but rather speculating on growth in the years to come. It seems likely some shareholders believe that Acconeer will significantly advance the business plan before too long.

As a general rule, if a company doesn't have much revenue, and it loses money, then it is a high risk investment. There is usually a significant chance that they will need more money for business development, putting them at the mercy of capital markets. So the share price itself impacts the value of the shares (as it determines the cost of capital). While some such companies go on to make revenue, profits, and generate value, others get hyped up by hopeful naifs before eventually going bankrupt.

When it last reported its balance sheet in September 2019, Acconeer had cash in excess of all liabilities of kr84m. That's not too bad but management may have to think about raising capital or taking on debt, unless the company is close to breaking even. With the share price down 24% in the last year , it seems likely that the need for cash is weighing on investors' minds. You can click on the image below to see (in greater detail) how Acconeer's cash levels have changed over time. You can see in the image below, how Acconeer's cash levels have changed over time (click to see the values).

It can be extremely risky to invest in a company that doesn't even have revenue. There's no way to know its value easily. Would it bother you if insiders were selling the stock? I'd like that just about as much as I like to drink milk and fruit juice mixed together. It only takes a moment for you to check whether we have identified any insider sales recently.

A Different Perspective

While Acconeer shareholders are down 24% for the year, the market itself is up 28%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. The share price decline has continued throughout the most recent three months, down 5.4%, suggesting an absence of enthusiasm from investors. Given the relatively short history of this stock, we'd remain pretty wary until we see some strong business performance. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. Be aware that Acconeer is showing 4 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those can't be ignored...