Generally speaking long term investing is the way to go. But along the way some stocks are going to perform badly. For example, after five long years the BRAIN Biotech AG (ETR:BNN) share price is a whole 63% lower. That is extremely sub-optimal, to say the least. And it's not just long term holders hurting, because the stock is down 38% in the last year.

Now let's have a look at the company's fundamentals, and see if the long term shareholder return has matched the performance of the underlying business.

See our latest analysis for BRAIN Biotech

Because BRAIN Biotech made a loss in the last twelve months, we think the market is probably more focussed on revenue and revenue growth, at least for now. Generally speaking, companies without profits are expected to grow revenue every year, and at a good clip. Some companies are willing to postpone profitability to grow revenue faster, but in that case one would hope for good top-line growth to make up for the lack of earnings.

In the last half decade, BRAIN Biotech saw its revenue increase by 9.5% per year. That's a pretty good rate for a long time period. The share price return isn't so respectable with an annual loss of 10% over the period. 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.

You can see how earnings and revenue have changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).

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

A Different Perspective

While the broader market gained around 10% in the last year, BRAIN Biotech shareholders lost 38%. 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 10% over the last half decade. Generally speaking long term share price weakness can be a bad sign, though contrarian investors might want to research the stock in hope of a turnaround. 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 2 warning signs we've spotted with BRAIN Biotech .

Of course BRAIN Biotech may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of growth stocks.