Investors in United States Cellular (NYSE:USM) have seen decent returns of 58% over the past year

United States Cellular Corporation (NYSE:USM) shareholders might be concerned after seeing the share price drop 15% in the last quarter. But that doesn't change the fact that the returns over the last year have been pleasing. Looking at the full year, the company has easily bested an index fund by gaining 58%.

So let's assess the underlying fundamentals over the last 1 year and see if they've moved in lock-step with shareholder returns.

See our latest analysis for United States Cellular

While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. 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 United States Cellular grew its earnings per share, moving from a loss to a profit.

While it's good to see positive EPS of US$0.64 this year, the loss wasn't too bad last year. We'd argue the positive share price reflects the move to profitability. Inflection points like this can be a great time to take a closer look at a company.

The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).

earnings-per-share-growth

We know that United States Cellular has improved its bottom line lately, but is it going to grow revenue? If you're interested, you could check this free report showing consensus revenue forecasts.

A Different Perspective

We're pleased to report that United States Cellular shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 58% over one year. Notably the five-year annualised TSR loss of 4% per year compares very unfavourably with the recent share price performance. The long term loss makes us cautious, but the short term TSR gain certainly hints at a brighter future. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand United States Cellular 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 United States Cellular , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

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.