Fujian SBS Zipper Science&Technology Co., Ltd's (SZSE:002098) Price Is Right But Growth Is Lacking After Shares Rocket 25%

Fujian SBS Zipper Science&Technology Co., Ltd (SZSE:002098) shareholders would be excited to see that the share price has had a great month, posting a 25% gain and recovering from prior weakness. Looking further back, the 11% rise over the last twelve months isn't too bad notwithstanding the strength over the last 30 days.

In spite of the firm bounce in price, Fujian SBS Zipper Science&Technology's price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 17.2x might still make it look like a buy right now compared to the market in China, where around half of the companies have P/E ratios above 28x and even P/E's above 52x are quite common. However, the P/E might be low for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.

Recent times have been quite advantageous for Fujian SBS Zipper Science&Technology as its earnings have been rising very briskly. One possibility is that the P/E is low because investors think this strong earnings growth might actually underperform the broader market in the near future. If you like the company, you'd be hoping this isn't the case so that you could potentially pick up some stock while it's out of favour.

Check out our latest analysis for Fujian SBS Zipper Science&Technology

Although there are no analyst estimates available for Fujian SBS Zipper Science&Technology, take a look at this free data-rich visualisation to see how the company stacks up on earnings, revenue and cash flow.

Does Growth Match The Low P/E?

Fujian SBS Zipper Science&Technology'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.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 80% gain to the company's bottom line. However, this wasn't enough as the latest three year period has seen a very unpleasant 38% drop in EPS in aggregate. Accordingly, shareholders would have felt downbeat about the medium-term rates of earnings growth.

Weighing that medium-term earnings trajectory against the broader market's one-year forecast for expansion of 36% shows it's an unpleasant look.

In light of this, it's understandable that Fujian SBS Zipper Science&Technology's P/E would sit below the majority of other companies. Nonetheless, there's no guarantee the P/E has reached a floor yet with earnings going in reverse. Even just maintaining these prices could be difficult to achieve as recent earnings trends are already weighing down the shares.

The Key Takeaway

Fujian SBS Zipper Science&Technology's stock might have been given a solid boost, but its P/E certainly hasn't reached any great heights. While the price-to-earnings ratio shouldn't be the defining factor in whether you buy a stock or not, it's quite a capable barometer of earnings expectations.

We've established that Fujian SBS Zipper Science&Technology 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. If recent medium-term earnings trends continue, it's hard to see the share price moving strongly in either direction in the near future under these circumstances.

There are also other vital risk factors to consider before investing and we've discovered 1 warning sign for Fujian SBS Zipper Science&Technology that you should be aware of.

Of course, you might also be able to find a better stock than Fujian SBS Zipper Science&Technology. So you may wish to see this free collection of other companies that have reasonable P/E ratios and have grown earnings strongly.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com