The Market Lifts Santech Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:STEC) Shares 440% But It Can Do More

Simply Wall St · 10/17 11:34

Despite an already strong run, Santech Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:STEC) shares have been powering on, with a gain of 440% in the last thirty days. Still, the 30-day jump doesn't change the fact that longer term shareholders have seen their stock decimated by the 63% share price drop in the last twelve months.

Even after such a large jump in price, Santech Holdings may still look like a strong buying opportunity at present with its price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of 0.3x, considering almost half of all companies in the Capital Markets industry in the United States have P/S ratios greater than 3.3x and even P/S higher than 9x aren't out of the ordinary. Although, it's not wise to just take the P/S at face value as there may be an explanation why it's so limited.

View our latest analysis for Santech Holdings

ps-multiple-vs-industry
NasdaqGM:STEC Price to Sales Ratio vs Industry October 17th 2024

What Does Santech Holdings' P/S Mean For Shareholders?

For instance, Santech Holdings' receding revenue in recent times would have to be some food for thought. Perhaps the market believes the recent revenue performance isn't good enough to keep up the industry, causing the P/S ratio to suffer. Those who are bullish on Santech Holdings will be hoping that this isn't the case so that they can pick up the stock at a lower valuation.

We don't have analyst forecasts, but you can see how recent trends are setting up the company for the future by checking out our free report on Santech Holdings' earnings, revenue and cash flow.

How Is Santech Holdings' Revenue Growth Trending?

There's an inherent assumption that a company should far underperform the industry for P/S ratios like Santech Holdings' to be considered reasonable.

Taking a look back first, the company's revenue growth last year wasn't something to get excited about as it posted a disappointing decline of 12%. This has soured the latest three-year period, which nevertheless managed to deliver a decent 20% overall rise in revenue. Accordingly, while they would have preferred to keep the run going, shareholders would be roughly satisfied with the medium-term rates of revenue growth.

It's interesting to note that the rest of the industry is similarly expected to grow by 7.0% over the next year, which is fairly even with the company's recent medium-term annualised growth rates.

With this information, we find it odd that Santech Holdings is trading at a P/S lower than the industry. It may be that most investors are not convinced the company can maintain recent growth rates.

The Key Takeaway

Santech Holdings' recent share price jump still sees fails to bring its P/S alongside the industry median. We'd say the price-to-sales ratio's power isn't primarily as a valuation instrument but rather to gauge current investor sentiment and future expectations.

The fact that Santech Holdings currently trades at a low P/S relative to the industry is unexpected considering its recent three-year growth is in line with the wider industry forecast. When we see industry-like revenue growth but a lower than expected P/S, we assume potential risks are what might be placing downward pressure on the share price. While recent

And what about other risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Santech Holdings (of which 2 are concerning!) 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 if growing profitability aligns with your idea of a great company, take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and a low P/E).