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While not a mind-blowing move, it is good to see that the PRA Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRAA) share price has gained 10% in the last three months. But that doesn't change the fact that the returns over the last half decade have been disappointing. In fact, the share price has declined rather badly, down some 52% in that time. So is the recent increase sufficient to restore confidence in the stock? Not yet. Of course, this could be the start of a turnaround.

View our latest analysis for PRA Group

In his essay The Superinvestors of Graham-and-Doddsville Warren Buffett described how share prices do not always rationally reflect the value of a business. 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.

Looking back five years, both PRA Group's share price and EPS declined; the latter at a rate of 18% per year. This fall in the EPS is worse than the 14% compound annual share price fall. So the market may previously have expected a drop, or else it expects the situation will improve.

The image below shows how EPS has tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

This free interactive report on PRA Group's earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

A Different Perspective

PRA Group shareholders are down 27% for the year, but the market itself is up 6.6%. 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. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 14% over the last half decade. We realise that Buffett has said investors should 'buy when there is blood on the streets', but we caution that investors should first be sure they are buying a high quality businesses. Is PRA Group cheap compared to other companies? These 3 valuation measures might help you decide.

For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

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