Why Investors Shouldn't Be Surprised By Hennge K.K.'s (TSE:4475) 33% Share Price Surge

Hennge K.K. (TSE:4475) shares have had a really impressive month, gaining 33% after a shaky period beforehand. Longer-term shareholders would be thankful for the recovery in the share price since it's now virtually flat for the year after the recent bounce.

After such a large jump in price, Hennge K.K may be sending very bearish signals at the moment with a price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 41x, since almost half of all companies in Japan have P/E ratios under 13x and even P/E's lower than 9x are not unusual. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the highly elevated P/E.

Recent times have been quite advantageous for Hennge K.K as its earnings have been rising very briskly. The P/E is probably high because investors think this strong earnings growth will be enough to outperform the broader market in the near future. You'd really hope so, otherwise you're paying a pretty hefty price for no particular reason.

View our latest analysis for Hennge K.K

Want the full picture on earnings, revenue and cash flow for the company? Then our free report on Hennge K.K will help you shine a light on its historical performance.

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

There's an inherent assumption that a company should far outperform the market for P/E ratios like Hennge K.K's to be considered reasonable.

If we review the last year of earnings growth, the company posted a terrific increase of 141%. The strong recent performance means it was also able to grow EPS by 170% in total over the last three years. So we can start by confirming that the company has done a great job of growing earnings over that time.

Comparing that to the market, which is only predicted to deliver 11% growth in the next 12 months, the company's momentum is stronger based on recent medium-term annualised earnings results.

With this information, we can see why Hennge K.K is trading at such a high P/E compared to the market. Presumably shareholders aren't keen to offload something they believe will continue to outmanoeuvre the bourse.

The Final Word

The strong share price surge has got Hennge K.K's P/E rushing to great heights as well. 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.

As we suspected, our examination of Hennge K.K revealed its three-year earnings trends are contributing to its high P/E, given they look better than current market expectations. At this stage investors feel the potential for a deterioration in earnings isn't great enough to justify a lower P/E ratio. If recent medium-term earnings trends continue, it's hard to see the share price falling strongly in the near future under these circumstances.

You should always think about risks. Case in point, we've spotted 1 warning sign for Hennge K.K you should be aware 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.