Sasseur Real Estate Investment Trust (SGX:CRPU) shareholders should be happy to see the share price up 12% in the last month. But that doesn't change the reality of under-performance over the last twelve months. In fact the stock is down 13% in the last year, well below the market return.

So let's have a look and see if the longer term performance of the company has been in line with the underlying business' progress.

Check out our latest analysis for Sasseur Real Estate Investment Trust

There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect 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.

Even though the Sasseur Real Estate Investment Trust share price is down over the year, its EPS actually improved. It could be that the share price was previously over-hyped.

The divergence between the EPS and the share price is quite notable, during the year. So it's easy to justify a look at some other metrics.

Sasseur Real Estate Investment Trust's dividend seems healthy to us, so we doubt that the yield is a concern for the market. From what we can see, revenue is pretty flat, so that doesn't really explain the share price drop. Of course, it could simply be that it simply fell short of the market consensus expectations.

You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

We know that Sasseur Real Estate Investment Trust has improved its bottom line lately, but what does the future have in store? This free report showing analyst forecasts should help you form a view on Sasseur Real Estate Investment Trust

What About Dividends?

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. 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. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. We note that for Sasseur Real Estate Investment Trust the TSR over the last 1 year was -5.1%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

Over the last year, Sasseur Real Estate Investment Trust shareholders took a loss of 5.1%, including dividends. In contrast the market gained about 0.2%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Fortunately the longer term story is brighter, with total returns averaging about 5% per year over three years. The recent sell-off could be an opportunity if the business remains sound, so it may be worth checking the fundamental data for signs of a long-term growth trend. 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. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Sasseur Real Estate Investment Trust you should know about.