When close to half the companies in India have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") above 30x, you may consider Master Components Limited (NSE:MASTER) as an attractive investment with its 22.7x P/E ratio. However, the P/E might be low for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.
With earnings growth that's exceedingly strong of late, Master Components has been doing very well. It might be that many expect the strong earnings performance to degrade substantially, which has repressed the P/E. 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 out of favour.
See our latest analysis for Master Components
How Is Master Components' Growth Trending?
In order to justify its P/E ratio, Master Components would need to produce sluggish growth that's trailing the market.
Taking a look back first, we see that the company grew earnings per share by an impressive 121% last year. The strong recent performance means it was also able to grow EPS by 472% in total over the last three years. Accordingly, shareholders would have probably welcomed those medium-term rates of earnings growth.
Comparing that to the market, which is only predicted to deliver 23% growth in the next 12 months, the company's momentum is stronger based on recent medium-term annualised earnings results.
With this information, we find it odd that Master Components is trading at a P/E lower than the market. Apparently some shareholders believe the recent performance has exceeded its limits and have been accepting significantly lower selling prices.
The Bottom Line On Master Components' P/E
We'd say the price-to-earnings ratio's power isn't primarily as a valuation instrument but rather to gauge current investor sentiment and future expectations.
We've established that Master Components currently trades on a much lower than expected P/E since its recent three-year growth is higher than the wider market forecast. There could be some major unobserved threats to earnings preventing the P/E ratio from matching this positive performance. At least price risks look to be very low if recent medium-term earnings trends continue, but investors seem to think future earnings could see a lot of volatility.
It's always necessary to consider the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 4 warning signs with Master Components (at least 1 which shouldn't be ignored), and understanding these should be part of your investment process.
If you're unsure about the strength of Master Components' business, why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals for some other companies you may have missed.
Valuation is complex, but we're here to simplify it.
Discover if Master Components might be undervalued or overvalued with our detailed analysis, featuring fair value estimates, potential risks, dividends, insider trades, and its financial condition.
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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.