Generally speaking long term investing is the way to go. But no-one is immune from buying too high. To wit, the SEACOR Marine Holdings Inc. (NYSE:SMHI) share price managed to fall 50% over five long years. That's an unpleasant experience for long term holders. We also note that the stock has performed poorly over the last year, with the share price down 49%. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 40% in the last 90 days. We note that the company has reported results fairly recently; and the market is hardly delighted. You can check out the latest numbers in our company report.

If the past week is anything to go by, investor sentiment for SEACOR Marine Holdings isn't positive, so let's see if there's a mismatch between fundamentals and the share price.

Given that SEACOR Marine Holdings didn't make a profit in the last twelve months, we'll focus on revenue growth to form a quick view of its business development. Generally speaking, companies without profits are expected to grow revenue every year, and at a good clip. That's because fast revenue growth can be easily extrapolated to forecast profits, often of considerable size.

In the last half decade, SEACOR Marine Holdings saw its revenue increase by 14% per year. That's a fairly respectable growth rate. The share price, meanwhile, has fallen 8% compounded, over five years. That suggests the market is disappointed with the current growth rate. That could lead to an opportunity if the company is going to become profitable sooner rather than later.

The image below shows how earnings and revenue have tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

If you are thinking of buying or selling SEACOR Marine Holdings stock, you should check out this FREE detailed report on its balance sheet.

A Different Perspective

SEACOR Marine Holdings shareholders are down 49% for the year, but the market itself is up 32%. 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. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 8% per year over five years. We realise that Baron Rothschild 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 business. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Take risks, for example - SEACOR Marine Holdings has 2 warning signs (and 1 which shouldn't be ignored) we think you should know about.

For those who like to find winning investments this free list of undervalued 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 American exchanges.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.