If you love investing in stocks you're bound to buy some losers. But long term Cross Country Healthcare, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCRN) shareholders have had a particularly rough ride in the last three year. Unfortunately, they have held through a 54% decline in the share price in that time. And more recent buyers are having a tough time too, with a drop of 38% in the last year. The falls have accelerated recently, with the share price down 27% in the last three months.

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 Cross Country Healthcare

There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect 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.

During the three years that the share price fell, Cross Country Healthcare's earnings per share (EPS) dropped by 36% each year. In comparison the 23% compound annual share price decline isn't as bad as the EPS drop-off. So the market may not be too worried about the EPS figure, at the moment -- or it may have previously priced some of the drop in. With a P/E ratio of 45.59, it's fair to say the market sees a brighter future for the business.

The graphic below depicts how EPS has changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

Before buying or selling a stock, we always recommend a close examination of historic growth trends, available here.

A Different Perspective

Investors in Cross Country Healthcare had a tough year, with a total loss of 38%, against a market gain of about 34%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 1.6% per year over five years. 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. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Cross Country Healthcare better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Cross Country Healthcare you should know about.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of companies we expect will grow earnings.

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.