There's Reason For Concern Over Sky Light Holdings Limited's (HKG:3882) Massive 42% Price Jump

Sky Light Holdings Limited (HKG:3882) shareholders are no doubt pleased to see that the share price has bounced 42% in the last month, although it is still struggling to make up recently lost ground. Not all shareholders will be feeling jubilant, since the share price is still down a very disappointing 13% in the last twelve months.

Since its price has surged higher, when almost half of the companies in Hong Kong's Consumer Durables industry have price-to-sales ratios (or "P/S") below 0.6x, you may consider Sky Light Holdings as a stock not worth researching with its 4.3x P/S ratio. However, the P/S might be quite high for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.

See our latest analysis for Sky Light Holdings

What Does Sky Light Holdings' Recent Performance Look Like?

For example, consider that Sky Light Holdings' financial performance has been poor lately as its revenue has been in decline. Perhaps the market believes the company can do enough to outperform the rest of the industry in the near future, which is keeping the P/S ratio high. However, if this isn't the case, investors might get caught out paying too much for the stock.

Want the full picture on earnings, revenue and cash flow for the company? Then our free report on Sky Light Holdings will help you shine a light on its historical performance.

How Is Sky Light Holdings' Revenue Growth Trending?

Sky Light Holdings' P/S ratio would be typical for a company that's expected to deliver very strong growth, and importantly, perform much better than the industry.

Taking a look back first, the company's revenue growth last year wasn't something to get excited about as it posted a disappointing decline of 55%. The last three years don't look nice either as the company has shrunk revenue by 33% in aggregate. Therefore, it's fair to say the revenue growth recently has been undesirable for the company.

Comparing that to the industry, which is predicted to deliver 33% growth in the next 12 months, the company's downward momentum based on recent medium-term revenue results is a sobering picture.

With this information, we find it concerning that Sky Light Holdings is trading at a P/S higher than the industry. It seems most investors are ignoring the recent poor growth rate and are hoping for a turnaround in the company's business prospects. Only the boldest would assume these prices are sustainable as a continuation of recent revenue trends is likely to weigh heavily on the share price eventually.

What Does Sky Light Holdings' P/S Mean For Investors?

The strong share price surge has lead to Sky Light Holdings' P/S soaring as well. It's argued the price-to-sales ratio is an inferior measure of value within certain industries, but it can be a powerful business sentiment indicator.

Our examination of Sky Light Holdings revealed its shrinking revenue over the medium-term isn't resulting in a P/S as low as we expected, given the industry is set to grow. Right now we aren't comfortable with the high P/S as this revenue performance is highly unlikely to support such 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.

It is also worth noting that we have found 2 warning signs for Sky Light Holdings (1 can't be ignored!) that you need to take into consideration.

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.