E. Bon Holdings Limited's (HKG:599) 36% Price Boost Is Out Of Tune With Revenues

E. Bon Holdings Limited (HKG:599) shares have had a really impressive month, gaining 36% after a shaky period beforehand. Unfortunately, despite the strong performance over the last month, the full year gain of 3.8% isn't as attractive.

In spite of the firm bounce in price, you could still be forgiven for feeling indifferent about E. Bon Holdings' P/S ratio of 0.3x, since the median price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio for the Trade Distributors industry in Hong Kong is also close to 0.5x. While this might not raise any eyebrows, if the P/S ratio is not justified investors could be missing out on a potential opportunity or ignoring looming disappointment.

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View our latest analysis for E. Bon Holdings

How E. Bon Holdings Has Been Performing

We'd have to say that with no tangible growth over the last year, E. Bon Holdings' revenue has been unimpressive. One possibility is that the P/S is moderate because investors think this benign revenue growth rate might not be enough to outperform the broader industry 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.

We don't have analyst forecasts, but you can see how recent trends are setting up the company for the future by checking out our free report on E. Bon Holdings' earnings, revenue and cash flow.

Do Revenue Forecasts Match The P/S Ratio?

The only time you'd be comfortable seeing a P/S like E. Bon Holdings' is when the company's growth is tracking the industry closely.

Taking a look back first, we see that there was hardly any revenue growth to speak of for the company over the past year. The lack of growth did nothing to help the company's aggregate three-year performance, which is an unsavory 7.4% drop in revenue. Accordingly, shareholders would have felt downbeat about the medium-term rates of revenue growth.

In contrast to the company, the rest of the industry is expected to grow by 5.3% over the next year, which really puts the company's recent medium-term revenue decline into perspective.

With this in mind, we find it worrying that E. Bon Holdings' P/S exceeds that of its industry peers. It seems most investors are ignoring the recent poor growth rate and are hoping for a turnaround in the company's business prospects. There's a good chance existing shareholders are setting themselves up for future disappointment if the P/S falls to levels more in line with the recent negative growth rates.

What Does E. Bon Holdings' P/S Mean For Investors?

Its shares have lifted substantially and now E. Bon Holdings' P/S is back within range of the industry median. While the price-to-sales ratio shouldn't be the defining factor in whether you buy a stock or not, it's quite a capable barometer of revenue expectations.

Our look at E. Bon Holdings revealed its shrinking revenues over the medium-term haven't impacted the P/S as much as we anticipated, given the industry is set to grow. Even though it matches the industry, we're uncomfortable with the current P/S ratio, as this dismal revenue performance is unlikely to support a more positive sentiment for long. Unless the the circumstances surrounding the recent medium-term improve, it wouldn't be wrong to expect a a difficult period ahead for the company's shareholders.

And what about other risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for E. Bon Holdings (of which 1 makes us a bit uncomfortable!) you should know about.

If strong companies turning a profit tickle your fancy, then you'll want to 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.