Even With A 27% Surge, Cautious Investors Are Not Rewarding Intercede Group plc's (LON:IGP) Performance Completely

Intercede Group plc (LON:IGP) shareholders are no doubt pleased to see that the share price has bounced 27% in the last month, although it is still struggling to make up recently lost ground. The last 30 days bring the annual gain to a very sharp 61%.

Even after such a large jump in price, there still wouldn't be many who think Intercede Group's price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 15.9x is worth a mention when the median P/E in the United Kingdom is similar at about 16x. While this might not raise any eyebrows, if the P/E ratio is not justified investors could be missing out on a potential opportunity or ignoring looming disappointment.

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With earnings growth that's exceedingly strong of late, Intercede Group has been doing very well. The P/E is probably moderate because investors think this strong earnings growth might not be enough to outperform 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 not quite in favour.

View our latest analysis for Intercede Group

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Does Growth Match The P/E?

Intercede Group's P/E ratio would be typical for a company that's only expected to deliver moderate growth, and importantly, perform in line with the market.

If we review the last year of earnings growth, the company posted a terrific increase of 270%. The latest three year period has also seen an excellent 253% overall rise in EPS, aided by its short-term performance. So we can start by confirming that the company has done a great job of growing earnings over that time.

This is in contrast to the rest of the market, which is expected to grow by 18% over the next year, materially lower than the company's recent medium-term annualised growth rates.

With this information, we find it interesting that Intercede Group is trading at a fairly similar P/E to the market. Apparently some shareholders believe the recent performance is at its limits and have been accepting lower selling prices.

The Final Word

Intercede Group appears to be back in favour with a solid price jump getting its P/E back in line with most other companies. It's argued the price-to-earnings ratio is an inferior measure of value within certain industries, but it can be a powerful business sentiment indicator.

We've established that Intercede Group currently trades on a lower than expected P/E since its recent three-year growth is higher than the wider market forecast. There could be some unobserved threats to earnings preventing the P/E ratio from matching this positive performance. At least the risk of a price drop looks to be subdued if recent medium-term earnings trends continue, but investors seem to think future earnings could see some volatility.

The company's balance sheet is another key area for risk analysis. Take a look at our free balance sheet analysis for Intercede Group with six simple checks on some of these key factors.

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

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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.