The RaQualia Pharma Inc. (TSE:4579) share price has softened a substantial 28% over the previous 30 days, handing back much of the gains the stock has made lately. The good news is that in the last year, the stock has shone bright like a diamond, gaining 157%.
Even after such a large drop in price, you could still be forgiven for thinking RaQualia Pharma is a stock to steer clear of with a price-to-sales ratios (or "P/S") of 8.2x, considering almost half the companies in Japan's Pharmaceuticals industry have P/S ratios below 2x. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the highly elevated P/S.
Check out our latest analysis for RaQualia Pharma
The revenue growth achieved at RaQualia Pharma over the last year would be more than acceptable for most companies. It might be that many expect the respectable revenue performance to beat most other companies over the coming period, which has increased investors’ willingness to pay up for the stock. If not, then existing shareholders may be a little nervous about the viability of the share price.
Want the full picture on earnings, revenue and cash flow for the company? Then our free report on RaQualia Pharma will help you shine a light on its historical performance.In order to justify its P/S ratio, RaQualia Pharma would need to produce outstanding growth that's well in excess of the industry.
If we review the last year of revenue growth, the company posted a worthy increase of 9.9%. Still, revenue has barely risen at all in aggregate from three years ago, which is not ideal. So it appears to us that the company has had a mixed result in terms of growing revenue over that time.
Weighing that medium-term revenue trajectory against the broader industry's one-year forecast for expansion of 6.3% shows it's an unpleasant look.
In light of this, it's alarming that RaQualia Pharma's P/S sits above the majority of other companies. Apparently many investors in the company are way more bullish than recent times would indicate and aren't willing to let go of their stock at any price. There's a very good chance existing shareholders are setting themselves up for future disappointment if the P/S falls to levels more in line with the recent negative growth rates.
Even after such a strong price drop, RaQualia Pharma's P/S still exceeds the industry median significantly. 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.
We've established that RaQualia Pharma currently trades on a much higher than expected P/S since its recent revenues have been in decline over the medium-term. Right now we aren't comfortable with the high P/S as this revenue performance is highly unlikely to support such positive sentiment for long. Unless the recent medium-term conditions improve markedly, investors will have a hard time accepting the share price as fair value.
There are also other vital risk factors to consider before investing and we've discovered 2 warning signs for RaQualia Pharma 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.