Despite AZZ’s (NYSE:AZZ) earnings trending downward, the stock price rose 8.9%, bringing its one-year gain to 93%.

The easiest way to invest in stocks is to buy exchange-traded funds, but you can significantly boost your returns by picking above-average stocks. AZZ Co., Ltd. (NYSE:AZZ) shares are up 91% from a year ago, well above the market return of about 22% (excluding dividends) over the same period. If the company can maintain this strong performance over the long term, investors will be in for a treat, and with the stock up 63% over three years, long-term shareholders are happy too.

The past week has proven to be a favorable one for AZZ investors, so let’s take a look at whether fundamentals have driven the company’s performance over the past year.

Check out our latest analysis for AZZ

While there’s no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, share prices don’t always reflect underlying business performance. Comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price trends can provide a view into how investor attitudes to a company have changed over time.

In fact, in the last 12 months AZZ’s EPS fell 63%.

Given the rising share price, it’s unlikely the market is measuring progress by EPS. In fact, if the share price is rising while EPS is falling, it often means the market is considering other factors.

We are skeptical that the 0.8% dividend yield will attract buyers to the stock, but the 3.5% year-on-year revenue growth should help. Many companies go through a phase where they have to sacrifice some of their profits to drive business development, but sometimes that’s for the best.

The company’s revenue and earnings (over time) are depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).

Balance sheet strength is important. free Report how your financial situation has changed over time.

What about dividends?

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, not just the price return, for a particular stock. While the price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the gains of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. It can be said that the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. Note that in the case of AZZ, the TSR for the past year was 93%, which is better than the price return shown above. The dividends paid by the company have thus boosted the share price. total Shareholder returns.

A different perspective

It’s good to see that AZZ shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 93% over the past year. This includes dividends, of course. This return is better than the five-year annualized TSR of 15%. So sentiment towards the company seems to have been positive recently. Given that share price momentum remains strong, it might be worth taking a closer look at this stock lest you miss out on an opportunity. It’s always interesting to track the long-term performance of a share price. But to get a better understanding of AZZ, there are many other factors to consider. Still, it’s interesting to see why AZZ is 3 Warning Signs in Investment Analysis One of them is important…

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

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

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