Sentiment Still Eluding Mitsui High-tec, Inc. (TSE:6966)

With a median price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of close to 14x in Japan, you could be forgiven for feeling indifferent about Mitsui High-tec, Inc.'s (TSE:6966) P/E ratio of 16x. Although, it's not wise to simply ignore the P/E without explanation as investors may be disregarding a distinct opportunity or a costly mistake.

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Mitsui High-tec hasn't been tracking well recently as its declining earnings compare poorly to other companies, which have seen some growth on average. It might be that many expect the dour earnings performance to strengthen positively, which has kept the P/E from falling. You'd really hope so, otherwise you're paying a relatively elevated price for a company with this sort of growth profile.

View our latest analysis for Mitsui High-tec

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Is There Some Growth For Mitsui High-tec?

There's an inherent assumption that a company should be matching the market for P/E ratios like Mitsui High-tec's to be considered reasonable.

Taking a look back first, the company's earnings per share growth last year wasn't something to get excited about as it posted a disappointing decline of 37%. The last three years don't look nice either as the company has shrunk EPS by 49% in aggregate. So unfortunately, we have to acknowledge that the company has not done a great job of growing earnings over that time.

Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to climb by 17% per year during the coming three years according to the three analysts following the company. That's shaping up to be materially higher than the 9.1% per year growth forecast for the broader market.

In light of this, it's curious that Mitsui High-tec's P/E sits in line with the majority of other companies. Apparently some shareholders are skeptical of the forecasts and have been accepting lower selling prices.

What We Can Learn From Mitsui High-tec's P/E?

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 Mitsui High-tec's analyst forecasts revealed that its superior earnings outlook isn't contributing to its P/E as much as we would have predicted. There could be some unobserved threats to earnings preventing the P/E ratio from matching the positive outlook. At least the risk of a price drop looks to be subdued, but investors seem to think future earnings could see some volatility.

We don't want to rain on the parade too much, but we did also find 3 warning signs for Mitsui High-tec that you need to be mindful of.

It's important to make sure you look for a great company, not just the first idea you come across. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and a low P/E).

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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.