Why Investors Shouldn't Be Surprised By Cornerstone Technologies Holdings Limited's (HKG:8391) P/S

Cornerstone Technologies Holdings Limited's (HKG:8391) price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of 5.6x may look like a poor investment opportunity when you consider close to half the companies in the Commercial Services industry in Hong Kong have P/S ratios below 0.5x. Although, it's not wise to just take the P/S at face value as there may be an explanation why it's so lofty.

Check out our latest analysis for Cornerstone Technologies Holdings

How Cornerstone Technologies Holdings Has Been Performing

Cornerstone Technologies Holdings certainly has been doing a great job lately as it's been growing its revenue at a really rapid pace. The P/S ratio is probably high because investors think this strong revenue growth will be enough to outperform the broader industry in the near future. You'd really hope so, otherwise you're paying a pretty hefty price for no particular reason.

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 Cornerstone Technologies Holdings' earnings, revenue and cash flow.

Do Revenue Forecasts Match The High P/S Ratio?

There's an inherent assumption that a company should far outperform the industry for P/S ratios like Cornerstone Technologies Holdings' to be considered reasonable.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an explosive gain to the company's top line. The latest three year period has also seen an excellent 95% overall rise in revenue, aided by its incredible short-term performance. So we can start by confirming that the company has done a great job of growing revenue over that time.

When compared to the industry's one-year growth forecast of 9.9%, the most recent medium-term revenue trajectory is noticeably more alluring

In light of this, it's understandable that Cornerstone Technologies Holdings' P/S sits above the majority of other companies. It seems most investors are expecting this strong growth to continue and are willing to pay more for the stock.

What We Can Learn From Cornerstone Technologies Holdings' P/S?

We'd say the price-to-sales ratio's power isn't primarily as a valuation instrument but rather to gauge current investor sentiment and future expectations.

As we suspected, our examination of Cornerstone Technologies Holdings revealed its three-year revenue trends are contributing to its high P/S, given they look better than current industry expectations. In the eyes of shareholders, the probability of a continued growth trajectory is great enough to prevent the P/S from pulling back. Barring any significant changes to the company's ability to make money, the share price should continue to be propped up.

Having said that, be aware Cornerstone Technologies Holdings is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 1 of those is a bit unpleasant.

Of course, profitable companies with a history of great earnings growth are generally safer bets. 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.