Ecos (India) Mobility & Hospitality Limited (NSE:ECOSMOBLTY) shares have continued their recent momentum with a 33% gain in the last month alone. Longer-term shareholders would be thankful for the recovery in the share price since it's now virtually flat for the year after the recent bounce.
Even after such a large jump in price, there still wouldn't be many who think Ecos (India) Mobility & Hospitality's price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 29.5x is worth a mention when the median P/E in India is similar at about 30x. While this might not raise any eyebrows, if the P/E ratio is not justified investors could be missing out on a potential opportunity or ignoring looming disappointment.
Ecos (India) Mobility & Hospitality hasn't been tracking well recently as its declining earnings compare poorly to other companies, which have seen some growth on average. 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.
See our latest analysis for Ecos (India) Mobility & Hospitality
Ecos (India) Mobility & Hospitality'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 3.9% decrease to the company's bottom line. However, a few very strong years before that means that it was still able to grow EPS by an impressive 509% in total over the last three years. Although it's been a bumpy ride, it's still fair to say the earnings growth recently has been more than adequate for the company.
Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to climb by 17% per year during the coming three years according to the one analyst following the company. With the market predicted to deliver 22% growth per annum, the company is positioned for a weaker earnings result.
With this information, we find it interesting that Ecos (India) Mobility & Hospitality 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.
Ecos (India) Mobility & Hospitality appears to be back in favour with a solid price jump getting its P/E back in line with most other companies. Typically, we'd caution against reading too much into price-to-earnings ratios when settling on investment decisions, though it can reveal plenty about what other market participants think about the company.
Our examination of Ecos (India) Mobility & Hospitality'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.
Many other vital risk factors can be found on the company's balance sheet. Our free balance sheet analysis for Ecos (India) Mobility & Hospitality with six simple checks will allow you to discover any risks that could be an issue.
You might be able to find a better investment than Ecos (India) Mobility & Hospitality. If you want a selection of possible candidates, check out this free list of interesting companies that trade on a low P/E (but have proven they can grow earnings).
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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.