There wouldn't be many who think China Resources Gas Group Limited's (HKG:1193) price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 12.4x is worth a mention when the median P/E in Hong Kong is similar at about 11x. Although, it's not wise to simply ignore the P/E without explanation as investors may be disregarding a distinct opportunity or a costly mistake.
While the market has experienced earnings growth lately, China Resources Gas Group's earnings have gone into reverse gear, which is not great. It might be that many expect the dour earnings performance to strengthen positively, which has kept the P/E from falling. If not, then existing shareholders may be a little nervous about the viability of the share price.
View our latest analysis for China Resources Gas Group
How Is China Resources Gas Group's Growth Trending?
China Resources Gas Group's P/E ratio would be typical for a company that's only expected to deliver moderate growth, and importantly, perform in line with the market.
Retrospectively, the last year delivered a frustrating 1.9% decrease to the company's bottom line. As a result, earnings from three years ago have also fallen 16% overall. Therefore, it's fair to say the earnings growth recently has been undesirable for the company.
Shifting to the future, estimates from the analysts covering the company suggest earnings should grow by 8.9% per year over the next three years. With the market predicted to deliver 12% growth per year, the company is positioned for a weaker earnings result.
With this information, we find it interesting that China Resources Gas Group is trading at a fairly similar P/E to the market. It seems most investors are ignoring the fairly limited growth expectations and are willing to pay up for exposure to the stock. Maintaining these prices will be difficult to achieve as this level of earnings growth is likely to weigh down the shares eventually.
The Key Takeaway
Generally, our preference is to limit the use of the price-to-earnings ratio to establishing what the market thinks about the overall health of a company.
Our examination of China Resources Gas Group's analyst forecasts revealed that its inferior earnings outlook isn't impacting its P/E as much as we would have predicted. Right now we are uncomfortable with the P/E as the predicted future earnings aren't likely to support a more positive sentiment for long. Unless these conditions improve, it's challenging to accept these prices as being reasonable.
Having said that, be aware China Resources Gas Group is showing 1 warning sign in our investment analysis, you should know about.
It's important to make sure you look for a great company, not just the first idea you come across. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and a low P/E).
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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.