Hudson Investment Group Limited's (ASX:HGL) Share Price Is Matching Sentiment Around Its Earnings

Hudson Investment Group Limited's (ASX:HGL) price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 8x might make it look like a buy right now compared to the market in Australia, where around half of the companies have P/E ratios above 16x and even P/E's above 33x are quite common. Although, it's not wise to just take the P/E at face value as there may be an explanation why it's limited.

Hudson Investment Group certainly has been doing a great job lately as it's been growing earnings at a really rapid pace. It might be that many expect the strong earnings performance to degrade substantially, which has repressed the P/E. If that doesn't eventuate, then existing shareholders have reason to be quite optimistic about the future direction of the share price.

View our latest analysis for Hudson Investment Group

Want the full picture on earnings, revenue and cash flow for the company? Then our free report on Hudson Investment Group will help you shine a light on its historical performance.

How Is Hudson Investment Group's Growth Trending?

Hudson Investment Group's P/E ratio would be typical for a company that's only expected to deliver limited growth, and importantly, perform worse than the market.

Taking a look back first, we see that the company grew earnings per share by an impressive 234% last year. Despite this strong recent growth, it's still struggling to catch up as its three-year EPS frustratingly shrank by 48% overall. So unfortunately, we have to acknowledge that the company has not done a great job of growing earnings over that time.

Comparing that to the market, which is predicted to deliver 12% growth in the next 12 months, the company's downward momentum based on recent medium-term earnings results is a sobering picture.

In light of this, it's understandable that Hudson Investment Group's P/E would sit below the majority of other companies. However, we think shrinking earnings are unlikely to lead to a stable P/E over the longer term, which could set up shareholders for future disappointment. There's potential for the P/E to fall to even lower levels if the company doesn't improve its profitability.

The Final Word

Using the price-to-earnings ratio alone to determine if you should sell your stock isn't sensible, however it can be a practical guide to the company's future prospects.

We've established that Hudson Investment Group maintains its low P/E on the weakness of its sliding earnings over the medium-term, as expected. At this stage investors feel the potential for an improvement in earnings isn't great enough to justify a higher P/E ratio. Unless the recent medium-term conditions improve, they will continue to form a barrier for the share price around these levels.

Before you take the next step, you should know about the 5 warning signs for Hudson Investment Group (2 are potentially serious!) that we have uncovered.

You might be able to find a better investment than Hudson Investment Group. If you want a selection of possible candidates, check out this free list of interesting companies that trade on a P/E below 20x (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.