Some stocks are best avoided. It hits us in the gut when we see fellow investors suffer a loss. Anyone who held Jamf Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:JAMF) for five years would be nursing their metaphorical wounds since the share price dropped 79% in that time. We also note that the stock has performed poorly over the last year, with the share price down 56%. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 23% in the last 90 days.

With the stock having lost 5.7% in the past week, it's worth taking a look at business performance and seeing if there's any red flags.

Jamf Holding 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. 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.

In the last half decade, Jamf Holding saw its revenue increase by 21% per year. That's better than most loss-making companies. So it's not at all clear to us why the share price sunk 12% throughout that time. You'd have to assume the market is worried that profits won't come soon enough. We'd recommend carefully checking for indications of future growth - and balance sheet threats - before considering a purchase.

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

Jamf Holding is well known by investors, and plenty of clever analysts have tried to predict the future profit levels.

A Different Perspective

Jamf Holding shareholders are down 56% for the year, but the market itself is up 14%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 12% over the last half decade. 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 Jamf Holding better, we need to consider many other factors.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of companies that have proven they can grow earnings.

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