Young’s Brewery (LON:YNGA) investors are sitting on a loss of 45% if they invested three y

April 7, 2025

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Many investors define successful investing as beating the market average over the long term. But in any portfolio, there are likely to be some stocks that fall short of that benchmark. We regret to report that long term Young & Co.’s Brewery, P.L.C. (LON:YNGA) shareholders have had that experience, with the share price dropping 48% in three years, versus a market decline of about 7.0%. And over the last year the share price fell 23%, so we doubt many shareholders are delighted. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 15% in the last 90 days.

Since shareholders are down over the longer term, lets look at the underlying fundamentals over the that time and see if they’ve been consistent with returns.

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To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it’s a weighing machine. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.

Young’s Brewery became profitable within the last five years. We would usually expect to see the share price rise as a result. So it’s worth looking at other metrics to try to understand the share price move.

Revenue is actually up 19% over the three years, so the share price drop doesn’t seem to hinge on revenue, either. It’s probably worth investigating Young’s Brewery further; while we may be missing something on this analysis, there might also be an opportunity.

The graphic below depicts how earnings and revenue have changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

earnings-and-revenue-growth
AIM:YNGA Earnings and Revenue Growth April 7th 2025

This free interactive report on Young’s Brewery’s balance sheet strength is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. In the case of Young’s Brewery, it has a TSR of -45% for the last 3 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. This is largely a result of its dividend payments!

Young’s Brewery shareholders are down 21% for the year (even including dividends), but the market itself is up 3.3%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Regrettably, last year’s performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 6% per year over five years. We realise that Baron Rothschild has said investors should “buy when there is blood on the streets”, but we caution that investors should first be sure they are buying a high quality business. 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. To that end, you should be aware of the 3 warning signs we’ve spotted with Young’s Brewery .

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 British exchanges.

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

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.

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