Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS) shareholders are up 14% this past week, but still in the red over the last five years

It's nice to see the Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:NGS) share price up 14% in a week. But don't envy holders -- looking back over 5 years the returns have been really bad. The share price has failed to impress anyone , down a sizable 56% during that time. So we're not so sure if the recent bounce should be celebrated. We'd err towards caution given the long term under-performance.

While the last five years has been tough for Natural Gas Services Group shareholders, this past week has shown signs of promise. So let's look at the longer term fundamentals and see if they've been the driver of the negative returns.

View our latest analysis for Natural Gas Services Group

Natural Gas Services 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. As you can imagine, fast revenue growth, when maintained, often leads to fast profit growth.

Over half a decade Natural Gas Services Group reduced its trailing twelve month revenue by 0.8% for each year. That's not what investors generally want to see. The share price decline of 9% compound, over five years, is understandable given the company is losing money, and revenue is moving in the wrong direction. The chance of imminent investor enthusiasm for this stock seems slimmer than Louise Brooks. Not that many investors like to invest in companies that are losing money and not growing revenue.

You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

This free interactive report on Natural Gas Services Group's balance sheet strength is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

A Different Perspective

Natural Gas Services Group shareholders are up 17% for the year. But that return falls short of the market. But at least that's still a gain! Over five years the TSR has been a reduction of 9% per year, over five years. It could well be that the business is stabilizing. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. Even so, be aware that Natural Gas Services Group is showing 1 warning sign in our investment analysis , you should know about...

Of course Natural Gas Services Group may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of growth stocks.

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

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.