What Is Byleasing Holdings's (HKG:8525) P/E Ratio After Its Share Price Rocketed?

Byleasing Holdings (HKG:8525) shares have had a really impressive month, gaining 32%, after some slippage. The bad news is that even after that recovery shareholders are still underwater by about 3.8% for the full year.

Assuming no other changes, a sharply higher share price makes a stock less attractive to potential buyers. In the long term, share prices tend to follow earnings per share, but in the short term prices bounce around in response to short term factors (which are not always obvious). So some would prefer to hold off buying when there is a lot of optimism towards a stock. One way to gauge market expectations of a stock is to look at its Price to Earnings Ratio (PE Ratio). A high P/E ratio means that investors have a high expectation about future growth, while a low P/E ratio means they have low expectations about future growth.

See our latest analysis for Byleasing Holdings

Does Byleasing Holdings Have A Relatively High Or Low P/E For Its Industry?

Byleasing Holdings has a P/E ratio of 6.44. You can see in the image below that the average P/E (6.3) for companies in the diversified financial industry is roughly the same as Byleasing Holdings's P/E.

That indicates that the market expects Byleasing Holdings will perform roughly in line with other companies in its industry. The company could surprise by performing better than average, in the future. Checking factors such as director buying and selling. could help you form your own view on if that will happen.

How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios

Generally speaking the rate of earnings growth has a profound impact on a company's P/E multiple. If earnings are growing quickly, then the 'E' in the equation will increase faster than it would otherwise. That means even if the current P/E is high, it will reduce over time if the share price stays flat. And as that P/E ratio drops, the company will look cheap, unless its share price increases.

Byleasing Holdings shrunk earnings per share by 29% over the last year.

Don't Forget: The P/E Does Not Account For Debt or Bank Deposits

The 'Price' in P/E reflects the market capitalization of the company. So it won't reflect the advantage of cash, or disadvantage of debt. The exact same company would hypothetically deserve a higher P/E ratio if it had a strong balance sheet, than if it had a weak one with lots of debt, because a cashed up company can spend on growth.

Spending on growth might be good or bad a few years later, but the point is that the P/E ratio does not account for the option (or lack thereof).

How Does Byleasing Holdings's Debt Impact Its P/E Ratio?

With net cash of CN¥13m, Byleasing Holdings has a very strong balance sheet, which may be important for its business. Having said that, at 10% of its market capitalization the cash hoard would contribute towards a higher P/E ratio.

The Verdict On Byleasing Holdings's P/E Ratio

Byleasing Holdings's P/E is 6.4 which is below average (9.4) in the HK market. The recent drop in earnings per share would make investors cautious, but the net cash position means the company has time to improve: if so, the low P/E could be an opportunity. What we know for sure is that investors are becoming less uncomfortable about Byleasing Holdings's prospects, since they have pushed its P/E ratio from 4.9 to 6.4 over the last month. For those who like to invest in turnarounds, that might mean it's time to put the stock on a watchlist, or research it. But others might consider the opportunity to have passed.

When the market is wrong about a stock, it gives savvy investors an opportunity. As value investor Benjamin Graham famously said, 'In the short run, the market is a voting machine but in the long run, it is a weighing machine. Although we don't have analyst forecasts you could get a better understanding of its growth by checking out this more detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking at a few good candidates. So take a peek at this free list of companies with modest (or no) debt, trading on a P/E below 20.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.