Investors can approximate the average market return by buying an index fund. While individual stocks can be big winners, plenty more fail to generate satisfactory returns. For example, the Électricite de Strasbourg Société Anonyme (EPA:ELEC) share price is down 18% in the last year. That contrasts poorly with the market return of 6.9%. On the other hand, the stock is actually up 11% over three years. It's down 1.8% in the last seven days.

Check out our latest analysis for Électricite de Strasbourg Société Anonyme

While the efficient markets hypothesis continues to be taught by some, it has been proven that markets are over-reactive dynamic systems, and investors are not always rational. One flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price.

Unfortunately Électricite de Strasbourg Société Anonyme reported an EPS drop of 22% for the last year. This fall in the EPS is significantly worse than the 18% the share price fall. It may have been that the weak EPS was not as bad as some had feared.

The graphic below depicts how EPS has changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

Dive deeper into Électricite de Strasbourg Société Anonyme's key metrics by checking this interactive graph of Électricite de Strasbourg Société Anonyme's earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What About Dividends?

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. 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. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. We note that for Électricite de Strasbourg Société Anonyme the TSR over the last year was -14%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. This is largely a result of its dividend payments!

A Different Perspective

Investors in Électricite de Strasbourg Société Anonyme had a tough year, with a total loss of 14% (including dividends), against a market gain of about 6.9%. Even the share prices of good stocks drop sometimes, but we want to see improvements in the fundamental metrics of a business, before getting too interested. On the bright side, long term shareholders have made money, with a gain of 3.8% per year over half a decade. If the fundamental data continues to indicate long term sustainable growth, the current sell-off could be an opportunity worth considering. Before forming an opinion on Électricite de Strasbourg Société Anonyme you might want to consider the cold hard cash it pays as a dividend. This free chart tracks its dividend over time.

Of course Électricite de Strasbourg Société Anonyme may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of growth stocks.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on FR exchanges.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.