Despite an already strong run, Blumar S.A. (SNSE:BLUMAR) shares have been powering on, with a gain of 26% in the last thirty days. The last 30 days bring the annual gain to a very sharp 70%.
Even after such a large jump in price, you could still be forgiven for feeling indifferent about Blumar's P/S ratio of 0.8x, since the median price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio for the Food industry in Chile is also close to 0.3x. Although, it's not wise to simply ignore the P/S without explanation as investors may be disregarding a distinct opportunity or a costly mistake.
View our latest analysis for Blumar
Recent times have been quite advantageous for Blumar as its revenue has been rising very briskly. Perhaps the market is expecting future revenue performance to taper off, which has kept the P/S from rising. If that doesn't eventuate, then existing shareholders have reason to be feeling optimistic about the future direction of the share price.
Want the full picture on earnings, revenue and cash flow for the company? Then our free report on Blumar will help you shine a light on its historical performance.In order to justify its P/S ratio, Blumar would need to produce growth that's similar to the industry.
Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 31% gain to the company's top line. The latest three year period has also seen a 15% overall rise in revenue, aided extensively by its short-term performance. Accordingly, shareholders would have probably been satisfied with the medium-term rates of revenue growth.
Weighing that recent medium-term revenue trajectory against the broader industry's one-year forecast for expansion of 5.2% shows it's about the same on an annualised basis.
In light of this, it's understandable that Blumar's P/S sits in line with the majority of other companies. It seems most investors are expecting to see average growth rates continue into the future and are only willing to pay a moderate amount for the stock.
Blumar's stock has a lot of momentum behind it lately, which has brought its P/S level with the rest of the industry. 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.
As we've seen, Blumar's three-year revenue trends seem to be contributing to its P/S, given they look similar to current industry expectations. Currently, with a past revenue trend that aligns closely wit the industry outlook, shareholders are confident the company's future revenue outlook won't contain any major surprises. If recent medium-term revenue trends continue, it's hard to see the share price moving strongly in either direction in the near future under these circumstances.
Don't forget that there may be other risks. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Blumar that you should be aware of.
If companies with solid past earnings growth is up your alley, you may wish to see this free collection of other companies with strong earnings growth and low P/E ratios.
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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.