It hasn't been the best quarter for Perma-Pipe International Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PPIH) shareholders, since the share price has fallen 27% in that time. But the silver lining is the stock is up over five years. Unfortunately its return of 76% is below the market return of 98%.

Let's take a look at the underlying fundamentals over the longer term, and see if they've been consistent with shareholders returns.

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While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. 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.

Over half a decade, Perma-Pipe International Holdings managed to grow its earnings per share at 39% a year. The EPS growth is more impressive than the yearly share price gain of 12% over the same period. So one could conclude that the broader market has become more cautious towards the stock. This cautious sentiment is reflected in its (fairly low) P/E ratio of 5.41.

You can see below how EPS has changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

Dive deeper into Perma-Pipe International Holdings' key metrics by checking this interactive graph of Perma-Pipe International Holdings's earnings, revenue and cash flow .

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that Perma-Pipe International Holdings shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 41% over the last year. That's better than the annualised return of 12% over half a decade, implying that the company is doing better recently. In the best case scenario, this may hint at some real business momentum, implying that now could be a great time to delve deeper. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Perma-Pipe International Holdings .

But note: Perma-Pipe International Holdings 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.