Investors Who Bought Mandalay Resources (TSE:MND) Shares Three Years Ago Are Now Down 90%
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It's not possible to invest over long periods without making some bad investments. But really big losses can really drag down an overall portfolio. So consider, for a moment, the misfortune of Mandalay Resources Corporation (TSE:MND) investors who have held the stock for three years as it declined a whopping 90%. That would certainly shake our confidence in the decision to own the stock. And more recent buyers are having a tough time too, with a drop of 40% in the last year. It's up 33% in the last seven days.
We really hope anyone holding through that price crash has a diversified portfolio. Even when you lose money, you don't have to lose the lesson.
See our latest analysis for Mandalay Resources
Because Mandalay Resources is loss-making, 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. As you can imagine, fast revenue growth, when maintained, often leads to fast profit growth.
Over the last three years, Mandalay Resources's revenue dropped 19% per year. That means its revenue trend is very weak compared to other loss making companies. And as you might expect the share price has been weak too, dropping at a rate of 53% per year. Never forget that loss making companies with falling revenue can and do cause losses for everyday investors. There is a good reason that investors often describe buying a sharply falling stock price as 'trying to catch a falling knife'. Think about it.
You can see how revenue and earnings have changed over time in the image below, (click on the chart to see cashflow).
Balance sheet strength is crucual. It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on how its financial position has changed over time.
A Different Perspective
Investors in Mandalay Resources had a tough year, with a total loss of 40%, against a market gain of about 1.6%. 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 33% over the last half decade. We realise that Buffett has said investors should 'buy when there is blood on the streets', but we caution that investors should first be sure they are buying a high quality businesses. Most investors take the time to check the data on insider transactions. You can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.
But note: Mandalay Resources 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 CA exchanges.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
