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It's easy to match the overall market return by buying an index fund. While individual stocks can be big winners, plenty more fail to generate satisfactory returns. Unfortunately the GCP Applied Technologies Inc. (NYSE:GCP) share price slid 19% over twelve months. That contrasts poorly with the market return of 3.7%. The silver lining (for longer term investors) is that the stock is still 6.3% higher than it was three years ago. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 13% in the last 90 days. This could be related to the recent financial results - you can catch up on the most recent data by reading our company report.

Check out our latest analysis for GCP Applied Technologies

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. One flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price.

During the last year GCP Applied Technologies grew its earnings per share, moving from a loss to a profit. When a company has just transitioned to profitability, earnings per share growth is not always the best way to look at the share price action. So it makes sense to check out some other factors.

Revenue was pretty flat on last year, which isn't too bad. But the share price might be lower because the market expected a meaningful improvement, and got none.

The chart below shows how revenue and earnings have changed with time, (if you click on the chart you can see the actual values).

We like that insiders have been buying shares in the last twelve months. Having said that, most people consider earnings and revenue growth trends to be a more meaningful guide to the business. This free report showing analyst forecasts should help you form a view on GCP Applied Technologies

A Different Perspective

The last twelve months weren't great for GCP Applied Technologies shares, which cost holders 19%, while the market was up about 3.7%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Investors are up over three years, booking 2.0% per year, much better than the more recent returns. The recent sell-off could be an opportunity if the business remains sound, so it may be worth checking the fundamental data for signs of a long-term growth trend. Investors who like to make money usually check up on insider purchases, such as the price paid, and total amount bought. You can find out about the insider purchases of GCP Applied Technologies by clicking this link.

GCP Applied Technologies is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.

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