Getting In Cheap On INFICON Holding AG (VTX:IFCN) Is Unlikely

When close to half the companies in Switzerland have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") below 19x, you may consider INFICON Holding AG (VTX:IFCN) as a stock to potentially avoid with its 27.4x P/E ratio. Although, it's not wise to just take the P/E at face value as there may be an explanation why it's as high as it is.

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While the market has experienced earnings growth lately, INFICON Holding's earnings have gone into reverse gear, which is not great. One possibility is that the P/E is high because investors think this poor earnings performance will turn the corner. If not, then existing shareholders may be extremely nervous about the viability of the share price.

View our latest analysis for INFICON Holding

If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report on INFICON Holding.

What Are Growth Metrics Telling Us About The High P/E?

The only time you'd be truly comfortable seeing a P/E as high as INFICON Holding's is when the company's growth is on track to outshine the market.

Taking a look back first, the company's earnings per share growth last year wasn't something to get excited about as it posted a disappointing decline of 6.4%. Regardless, EPS has managed to lift by a handy 23% in aggregate from three years ago, thanks to the earlier period of growth. Although it's been a bumpy ride, it's still fair to say the earnings growth recently has been mostly respectable for the company.

Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to climb by 9.3% per annum during the coming three years according to the eight analysts following the company. Meanwhile, the rest of the market is forecast to expand by 11% per annum, which is not materially different.

With this information, we find it interesting that INFICON Holding is trading at a high P/E compared to the market. It seems most investors are ignoring the fairly average growth expectations and are willing to pay up for exposure to the stock. Although, additional gains will be difficult to achieve as this level of earnings growth is likely to weigh down the share price eventually.

What We Can Learn From INFICON Holding's P/E?

Typically, we'd caution against reading too much into price-to-earnings ratios when settling on investment decisions, though it can reveal plenty about what other market participants think about the company.

Our examination of INFICON Holding's analyst forecasts revealed that its market-matching earnings outlook isn't impacting its high P/E as much as we would have predicted. Right now we are uncomfortable with the relatively high share price as the predicted future earnings aren't likely to support such positive sentiment for long. Unless these conditions improve, it's challenging to accept these prices as being reasonable.

Many other vital risk factors can be found on the company's balance sheet. Take a look at our free balance sheet analysis for INFICON Holding with six simple checks on some of these key factors.

If these risks are making you reconsider your opinion on INFICON Holding, explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there.

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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.