With a price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 54.9x Piccadily Agro Industries Limited (NSE:PICCADIL) may be sending very bearish signals at the moment, given that almost half of all companies in India have P/E ratios under 25x and even P/E's lower than 14x are not unusual. However, the P/E might be quite high for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.
As an illustration, earnings have deteriorated at Piccadily Agro Industries over the last year, which is not ideal at all. One possibility is that the P/E is high because investors think the company will still do enough to outperform the broader market in the near future. You'd really hope so, otherwise you're paying a pretty hefty price for no particular reason.
See our latest analysis for Piccadily Agro Industries
The only time you'd be truly comfortable seeing a P/E as steep as Piccadily Agro Industries' is when the company's growth is on track to outshine the market decidedly.
If we review the last year of earnings, dishearteningly the company's profits fell to the tune of 3.9%. However, a few very strong years before that means that it was still able to grow EPS by an impressive 328% 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.
This is in contrast to the rest of the market, which is expected to grow by 25% over the next year, materially lower than the company's recent medium-term annualised growth rates.
With this information, we can see why Piccadily Agro Industries is trading at such a high P/E compared to the market. It seems most investors are expecting this strong growth to continue and are willing to pay more for the stock.
It's argued the price-to-earnings ratio is an inferior measure of value within certain industries, but it can be a powerful business sentiment indicator.
We've established that Piccadily Agro Industries maintains its high P/E on the strength of its recent three-year growth being higher than the wider market forecast, as expected. Right now shareholders are comfortable with the P/E as they are quite confident earnings aren't under threat. Unless the recent medium-term conditions change, they will continue to provide strong support to the share price.
Many other vital risk factors can be found on the company's balance sheet. Take a look at our free balance sheet analysis for Piccadily Agro Industries with six simple checks on some of these key factors.
You might be able to find a better investment than Piccadily Agro Industries. 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.