When you see that almost half of the companies in the Industrials industry in Italy have price-to-sales ratios (or "P/S") below 0.9x, Italmobiliare S.p.A. (BIT:ITM) looks to be giving off some sell signals with its 2.3x P/S ratio. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the elevated P/S.
View our latest analysis for Italmobiliare
What Does Italmobiliare's Recent Performance Look Like?
Italmobiliare could be doing better as it's been growing revenue less than most other companies lately. Perhaps the market is expecting future revenue performance to undergo a reversal of fortunes, which has elevated the P/S ratio. If not, then existing shareholders may be very nervous about the viability of the share price.
If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report on Italmobiliare.Do Revenue Forecasts Match The High P/S Ratio?
There's an inherent assumption that a company should outperform the industry for P/S ratios like Italmobiliare's to be considered reasonable.
If we review the last year of revenue, the company posted a result that saw barely any deviation from a year ago. Still, the latest three year period was better as it's delivered a decent 17% overall rise in revenue. Therefore, it's fair to say that revenue growth has been inconsistent recently for the company.
Shifting to the future, estimates from the two analysts covering the company suggest revenue should grow by 19% over the next year. Meanwhile, the rest of the industry is forecast to only expand by 4.0%, which is noticeably less attractive.
With this in mind, it's not hard to understand why Italmobiliare's P/S is high relative to its industry peers. It seems most investors are expecting this strong future growth and are willing to pay more for the stock.
What We Can Learn From Italmobiliare's P/S?
Generally, our preference is to limit the use of the price-to-sales ratio to establishing what the market thinks about the overall health of a company.
Our look into Italmobiliare shows that its P/S ratio remains high on the merit of its strong future revenues. It appears that shareholders are confident in the company's future revenues, which is propping up the P/S. Unless these conditions change, they will continue to provide strong support to the share price.
We don't want to rain on the parade too much, but we did also find 3 warning signs for Italmobiliare (1 is concerning!) that you need to be mindful of.
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.
About BIT:ITM
Italmobiliare
An investment holding company, owns and manages a portfolio of equity and other investments in the financial and industrial sectors in Italy and internationally.
Solid track record with excellent balance sheet and pays a dividend.