Yahoo Finance Shareholders Of Telecom Plus (LON:TEP) Must Be Happy With Their 46% Return
Telecom Plus PLC (LON:TEP) shareholders have seen the share price descend 11% over the month. While that's not great, the returns over five years have been decent. The share price is up 19%, which is better than the market return of 16%.
Check out our latest analysis for Telecom Plus
While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. One way to examine how market sentiment has changed over time is to look at the interaction between a company's share price and its earnings per share (EPS).
Over half a decade, Telecom Plus managed to grow its earnings per share at 2.5% a year. This EPS growth is slower than the share price growth of 3.5% per year, over the same period. This suggests that market participants hold the company in higher regard, these days. That's not necessarily surprising considering the five-year track record of earnings growth.
The image below shows how EPS has tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).
We're pleased to report that the CEO is remunerated more modestly than most CEOs at similarly capitalized companies. But while CEO remuneration is always worth checking, the really important question is whether the company can grow earnings going forward. Before buying or selling a stock, we always recommend a close examination of historic growth trends, available here..
What About Dividends?
When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. The TSR incorporates the value of any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings, along with any dividends, based on the assumption that the dividends are reinvested. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. As it happens, Telecom Plus' TSR for the last 5 years was 46%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!
A Different Perspective
We're pleased to report that Telecom Plus shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 6.0% over one year. That's including the dividend. Having said that, the five-year TSR of 7.9% a year, is even better. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Telecom Plus better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 3 warning signs with Telecom Plus (at least 1 which is potentially serious) , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.
But note: Telecom Plus 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 GB exchanges.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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.
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