Ruifeng Power Group Company Limited (HKG:2025) shares have had a really impressive month, gaining 25% after a shaky period beforehand. The last 30 days bring the annual gain to a very sharp 49%.
After such a large jump in price, given close to half the companies operating in Hong Kong's Auto Components industry have price-to-sales ratios (or "P/S") below 0.7x, you may consider Ruifeng Power Group as a stock to potentially avoid with its 2.2x P/S ratio. Although, it's not wise to just take the P/S at face value as there may be an explanation why it's as high as it is.
We've discovered 1 warning sign about Ruifeng Power Group. View them for free.Check out our latest analysis for Ruifeng Power Group
How Has Ruifeng Power Group Performed Recently?
Recent times have been quite advantageous for Ruifeng Power Group as its revenue has been rising very briskly. Perhaps the market is expecting future revenue performance to outperform the wider market, which has seemingly got people interested in the stock. You'd really hope so, otherwise you're paying a pretty hefty price for no particular reason.
Although there are no analyst estimates available for Ruifeng Power Group, take a look at this free data-rich visualisation to see how the company stacks up on earnings, revenue and cash flow.Is There Enough Revenue Growth Forecasted For Ruifeng Power Group?
There's an inherent assumption that a company should outperform the industry for P/S ratios like Ruifeng Power Group's to be considered reasonable.
If we review the last year of revenue growth, the company posted a terrific increase of 33%. The latest three year period has also seen an excellent 41% overall rise in revenue, aided by its short-term performance. Accordingly, shareholders would have definitely welcomed those medium-term rates of revenue growth.
This is in contrast to the rest of the industry, which is expected to grow by 24% over the next year, materially higher than the company's recent medium-term annualised growth rates.
With this in mind, we find it worrying that Ruifeng Power Group's P/S exceeds that of its industry peers. It seems most investors are ignoring the fairly limited recent growth rates and are hoping for a turnaround in the company's business prospects. There's a good chance existing shareholders are setting themselves up for future disappointment if the P/S falls to levels more in line with recent growth rates.
The Key Takeaway
The large bounce in Ruifeng Power Group's shares has lifted the company's P/S handsomely. Using the price-to-sales ratio alone to determine if you should sell your stock isn't sensible, however it can be a practical guide to the company's future prospects.
The fact that Ruifeng Power Group currently trades on a higher P/S relative to the industry is an oddity, since its recent three-year growth is lower than the wider industry forecast. When we see slower than industry revenue growth but an elevated P/S, there's considerable risk of the share price declining, sending the P/S lower. Unless there is a significant improvement in the company's medium-term performance, it will be difficult to prevent the P/S ratio from declining to a more reasonable level.
Having said that, be aware Ruifeng Power Group is showing 1 warning sign in our investment analysis, you should know about.
Of course, profitable companies with a history of great earnings growth are generally safer bets. So you may wish to see this free collection of other companies that have reasonable P/E ratios and have grown earnings strongly.
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.