It is doubtless a positive to see that the Lifecore Biomedical, Inc. (NASDAQ:LFCR) share price has gained some 75% in the last three months. But over the last half decade, the stock has not performed well. In fact, the share price is down 33%, which falls well short of the return you could get by buying an index fund.

Since shareholders are down over the longer term, lets look at the underlying fundamentals over the that time and see if they've been consistent with returns.

Check out our latest analysis for Lifecore Biomedical

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. 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.

During five years of share price growth, Lifecore Biomedical moved from a loss to profitability. Most would consider that to be a good thing, so it's counter-intuitive to see the share price declining. Other metrics may better explain the share price move.

It could be that the revenue decline of 41% per year is viewed as evidence that Lifecore Biomedical is shrinking. That could explain the weak share price.

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

We know that Lifecore Biomedical has improved its bottom line lately, but what does the future have in store? If you are thinking of buying or selling Lifecore Biomedical stock, you should check out this free report showing analyst profit forecasts.

A Different Perspective

Lifecore Biomedical shareholders are up 5.1% for the year. But that was short of the market average. On the bright side, that's still a gain, and it is certainly better than the yearly loss of about 6% endured over half a decade. It could well be that the business is stabilizing. 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 - Lifecore Biomedical has 4 warning signs (and 2 which are a bit concerning) we think you should know about.

But note: Lifecore Biomedical may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with past earnings growth (and further growth forecast).

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.