Earnings Working Against Finning International Inc.'s (TSE:FTT) Share Price

With a price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 11.4x Finning International Inc. (TSE:FTT) may be sending bullish signals at the moment, given that almost half of all companies in Canada have P/E ratios greater than 15x and even P/E's higher than 31x are not unusual. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the reduced P/E.

Finning International's negative earnings growth of late has neither been better nor worse than most other companies. One possibility is that the P/E is low because investors think the company's earnings may begin to slide even faster. If you still like the company, you'd want its earnings trajectory to turn around before making any decisions. In saying that, existing shareholders may feel hopeful about the share price if the company's earnings continue tracking the market.

View our latest analysis for Finning International

Want the full picture on analyst estimates for the company? Then our free report on Finning International will help you uncover what's on the horizon.

Is There Any Growth For Finning International?

In order to justify its P/E ratio, Finning International would need to produce sluggish growth that's trailing the market.

If we review the last year of earnings, dishearteningly the company's profits fell to the tune of 1.7%. Still, the latest three year period has seen an excellent 135% overall rise in EPS, in spite of its unsatisfying short-term performance. So we can start by confirming that the company has generally done a very good job of growing earnings over that time, even though it had some hiccups along the way.

Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to climb by 18% during the coming year according to the eight analysts following the company. That's shaping up to be materially lower than the 23% growth forecast for the broader market.

In light of this, it's understandable that Finning International's P/E sits below the majority of other companies. It seems most investors are expecting to see limited future growth and are only willing to pay a reduced amount for the stock.

The Bottom Line On Finning International's P/E

Generally, our preference is to limit the use of the price-to-earnings ratio to establishing what the market thinks about the overall health of a company.

As we suspected, our examination of Finning International's analyst forecasts revealed that its inferior earnings outlook is contributing to its low P/E. At this stage investors feel the potential for an improvement in earnings isn't great enough to justify a higher P/E ratio. Unless these conditions improve, they will continue to form a barrier for the share price around these levels.

You need to take note of risks, for example - Finning International has 3 warning signs (and 1 which is potentially serious) we think you should know about.

You might be able to find a better investment than Finning International. 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.