It’s really great to see that even after a strong run, Bhartiya International (NSE:BIL) shares have been powering on, with a gain of 31% in the last thirty days. But shareholders may not all be feeling jubilant, since the share price is still down 21% in the last year.
All else being equal, a sharp share price increase should make a stock less attractive to potential investors. In the long term, share prices tend to follow earnings per share, but in the short term prices bounce around in response to short term factors (which are not always obvious). The implication here is that deep value investors might steer clear when expectations of a company are too high. One way to gauge market expectations of a stock is to look at its Price to Earnings Ratio (PE Ratio). A high P/E implies that investors have high expectations of what a company can achieve compared to a company with a low P/E ratio.
View our latest analysis for Bhartiya International
How Does Bhartiya International’s P/E Ratio Compare To Its Peers?
Bhartiya International’s P/E is 10.65. As you can see below Bhartiya International has a P/E ratio that is fairly close for the average for the luxury industry, which is 11.3.
Bhartiya International’s P/E tells us that market participants think its prospects are roughly in line with its industry. So if Bhartiya International actually outperforms its peers going forward, that should be a positive for the share price. I would further inform my view by checking insider buying and selling., among other things.
How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios
Probably the most important factor in determining what P/E a company trades on is the earnings growth. Earnings growth means that in the future the ‘E’ will be higher. That means unless the share price increases, the P/E will reduce in a few years. And as that P/E ratio drops, the company will look cheap, unless its share price increases.
It’s great to see that Bhartiya International grew EPS by 10% in the last year. And its annual EPS growth rate over 3 years is 3.2%. So one might expect an above average P/E ratio. But earnings per share are down 2.1% per year over the last five years.
A Limitation: P/E Ratios Ignore Debt and Cash In The Bank
One drawback of using a P/E ratio is that it considers market capitalization, but not the balance sheet. Thus, the metric does not reflect cash or debt held by the company. Theoretically, a business can improve its earnings (and produce a lower P/E in the future) by investing in growth. That means taking on debt (or spending its cash).
Such expenditure might be good or bad, in the long term, but the point here is that the balance sheet is not reflected by this ratio.
Bhartiya International’s Balance Sheet
Net debt totals a substantial 152% of Bhartiya International’s market cap. If you want to compare its P/E ratio to other companies, you must keep in mind that these debt levels would usually warrant a relatively low P/E.
The Bottom Line On Bhartiya International’s P/E Ratio
Bhartiya International’s P/E is 10.6 which is below average (14.0) in the IN market. While the EPS growth last year was strong, the significant debt levels reduce the number of options available to management. The low P/E ratio suggests current market expectations are muted, implying these levels of growth will not continue. What we know for sure is that investors have become more excited about Bhartiya International recently, since they have pushed its P/E ratio from 8.1 to 10.6 over the last month. If you like to buy stocks that have recently impressed the market, then this one might be a candidate; but if you prefer to invest when there is ‘blood in the streets’, then you may feel the opportunity has passed.
Investors should be looking to buy stocks that the market is wrong about. If it is underestimating a company, investors can make money by buying and holding the shares until the market corrects itself. We don’t have analyst forecasts, but you might want to assess this data-rich visualization of earnings, revenue and cash flow.
But note: Bhartiya International may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and a P/E ratio below 20).
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.
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