OneSpaWorld Holdings Limited's (NASDAQ:OSW) price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of 2.2x may not look like an appealing investment opportunity when you consider close to half the companies in the Consumer Services industry in the United States have P/S ratios below 1.3x. However, the P/S might be high for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.
View our latest analysis for OneSpaWorld Holdings
Recent revenue growth for OneSpaWorld Holdings has been in line with the industry. It might be that many expect the mediocre revenue performance to strengthen positively, which has kept the P/S ratio from falling. However, if this isn't the case, investors might get caught out paying too much for the stock.
Want the full picture on analyst estimates for the company? Then our free report on OneSpaWorld Holdings will help you uncover what's on the horizon.OneSpaWorld Holdings' P/S ratio would be typical for a company that's expected to deliver solid growth, and importantly, perform better than the industry.
Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 19% gain to the company's top line. Spectacularly, three year revenue growth has ballooned by several orders of magnitude, thanks in part to the last 12 months of revenue growth. Therefore, it's fair to say the revenue growth recently has been superb for the company.
Looking ahead now, revenue is anticipated to climb by 9.2% each year during the coming three years according to the five analysts following the company. Meanwhile, the rest of the industry is forecast to expand by 24% per annum, which is noticeably more attractive.
In light of this, it's alarming that OneSpaWorld Holdings' P/S sits above the majority of other companies. It seems most investors are hoping for a turnaround in the company's business prospects, but the analyst cohort is not so confident this will happen. There's a good chance these shareholders are setting themselves up for future disappointment if the P/S falls to levels more in line with the growth outlook.
Typically, we'd caution against reading too much into price-to-sales ratios when settling on investment decisions, though it can reveal plenty about what other market participants think about the company.
Despite analysts forecasting some poorer-than-industry revenue growth figures for OneSpaWorld Holdings, this doesn't appear to be impacting the P/S in the slightest. Right now we aren't comfortable with the high P/S as the predicted future revenues aren't likely to support such positive sentiment for long. At these price levels, investors should remain cautious, particularly if things don't improve.
You always need to take note of risks, for example - OneSpaWorld Holdings has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of.
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.
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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.