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ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company Limited (NSE:ICICIPRULI) shareholders should be happy to see the share price up 10% in the last quarter. But that doesn't change the fact that the returns over the last year have been less than pleasing. After all, the share price is down 25% in the last year, significantly under-performing the market.

View our latest analysis for ICICI Prudential Life Insurance

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.

Unhappily, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance had to report a 40% decline in EPS over the last year. The share price fall of 25% isn't as bad as the reduction in earnings per share. 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).

Before buying or selling a stock, we always recommend a close examination of historic growth trends, available here..

A Different Perspective

We doubt ICICI Prudential Life Insurance shareholders are happy with the loss of 24% over twelve months (even including dividends). That falls short of the market, which lost 5.2%. That's disappointing, but it's worth keeping in mind that the market-wide selling wouldn't have helped. Putting aside the last twelve months, it's good to see the share price has rebounded by 10%, in the last ninety days. This could just be a bounce because the selling was too aggressive, but fingers crossed it's the start of a new trend. Before spending more time on ICICI Prudential Life Insurance it might be wise to click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling shares.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of companies we expect will grow earnings.

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