Kyudenko Corporation's (TSE:1959) Business Is Yet to Catch Up With Its Share Price

Kyudenko Corporation's (TSE:1959) price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 16.5x might make it look like a sell right now compared to the market in Japan, where around half of the companies have P/E ratios below 14x and even P/E's below 9x are quite common. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the elevated P/E.

With earnings growth that's inferior to most other companies of late, Kyudenko has been relatively sluggish. One possibility is that the P/E is high because investors think this lacklustre earnings performance will improve markedly. If not, then existing shareholders may be very nervous about the viability of the share price.

See our latest analysis for Kyudenko

If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report on Kyudenko.

What Are Growth Metrics Telling Us About The High P/E?

Kyudenko's P/E ratio would be typical for a company that's expected to deliver solid growth, and importantly, perform better than the market.

Taking a look back first, we see that the company managed to grow earnings per share by a handy 6.4% last year. The latest three year period has also seen a 12% overall rise in EPS, aided somewhat by its short-term performance. So we can start by confirming that the company has actually done a good job of growing earnings over that time.

Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to climb by 9.3% each year during the coming three years according to the six analysts following the company. Meanwhile, the rest of the market is forecast to expand by 9.5% each year, which is not materially different.

With this information, we find it interesting that Kyudenko is trading at a high P/E compared to the market. It seems most investors are ignoring the fairly average growth expectations and are willing to pay up for exposure to the stock. These shareholders may be setting themselves up for disappointment if the P/E falls to levels more in line with the growth outlook.

The Final Word

Generally, our preference is to limit the use of the price-to-earnings ratio to establishing what the market thinks about the overall health of a company.

Our examination of Kyudenko's analyst forecasts revealed that its market-matching earnings outlook isn't impacting its high P/E as much as we would have predicted. When we see an average earnings outlook with market-like growth, we suspect the share price is at risk of declining, sending the high P/E lower. Unless these conditions improve, it's challenging to accept these prices as being reasonable.

Many other vital risk factors can be found on the company's balance sheet. You can assess many of the main risks through our free balance sheet analysis for Kyudenko with six simple checks.

If P/E ratios interest you, you may wish to see this free collection of other companies with strong earnings growth and low P/E ratios.

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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.