Many Still Looking Away From Youngbo Chemical Co., Ltd. (KRX:014440)

Youngbo Chemical Co., Ltd.'s (KRX:014440) price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 4.6x might make it look like a strong buy right now compared to the market in Korea, where around half of the companies have P/E ratios above 12x and even P/E's above 23x are quite common. However, the P/E might be quite low for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.

Recent times have been quite advantageous for Youngbo Chemical as its earnings have been rising very briskly. One possibility is that the P/E is low because investors think this strong earnings growth might actually underperform the broader market in the near future. If that doesn't eventuate, then existing shareholders have reason to be quite optimistic about the future direction of the share price.

Check out our latest analysis for Youngbo Chemical

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

How Is Youngbo Chemical's Growth Trending?

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

Taking a look back first, we see that the company grew earnings per share by an impressive 219% last year. Pleasingly, EPS has also lifted 498% in aggregate from three years ago, thanks to the last 12 months of growth. So we can start by confirming that the company has done a great job of growing earnings over that time.

This is in contrast to the rest of the market, which is expected to grow by 33% over the next year, materially lower than the company's recent medium-term annualised growth rates.

With this information, we find it odd that Youngbo Chemical 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 Key Takeaway

Using the price-to-earnings ratio alone to determine if you should sell your stock isn't sensible, however it can be a practical guide to the company's future prospects.

Our examination of Youngbo Chemical revealed its three-year earnings trends aren't contributing to its P/E anywhere near as much as we would have predicted, given they look better than current market expectations. 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.

Having said that, be aware Youngbo Chemical is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis, you should know about.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking at a few good candidates. So take a peek at this free list of companies with a strong growth track record, trading on 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.