Generally speaking long term investing is the way to go. But unfortunately, some companies simply don't succeed. To wit, the Trip.com Group Limited (NASDAQ:TCOM) share price managed to fall 62% over five long years. That's not a lot of fun for true believers. And some of the more recent buyers are probably worried, too, with the stock falling 46% in the last year. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 22% in the last 90 days. However, one could argue that the price has been influenced by the general market, which is down 10% in the same timeframe.

With the stock having lost 9.9% in the past week, it's worth taking a look at business performance and seeing if there's any red flags.

Check out our latest analysis for Trip.com Group

Trip.com Group wasn't profitable in the last twelve months, it is unlikely we'll see a strong correlation between its share price and its earnings per share (EPS). Arguably revenue is our next best option. When a company doesn't make profits, we'd generally expect to see good revenue growth. That's because it's hard to be confident a company will be sustainable if revenue growth is negligible, and it never makes a profit.

Over half a decade Trip.com Group reduced its trailing twelve month revenue by 2.9% for each year. While far from catastrophic that is not good. The share price decline of 10% compound, over five years, is understandable given the company is losing money, and revenue is moving in the wrong direction. We don't think anyone is rushing to buy this stock. Ultimately, it may be worth watching - should revenue pick up, the share price might follow.

The image below shows how earnings and revenue have tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

Trip.com Group is a well known stock, with plenty of analyst coverage, suggesting some visibility into future growth. Given we have quite a good number of analyst forecasts, it might be well worth checking out this free chart depicting consensus estimates.

A Different Perspective

We regret to report that Trip.com Group shareholders are down 46% for the year. Unfortunately, that's worse than the broader market decline of 8.4%. Having said that, it's inevitable that some stocks will be oversold in a falling market. The key is to keep your eyes on the fundamental developments. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 10% 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 Trip.com Group better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 1 warning sign with Trip.com Group , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

But note: Trip.com Group 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 US 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.