Benign Growth For Gigasun AB (publ) (STO:GIGA) Underpins Stock's 27% Plummet

To the annoyance of some shareholders, Gigasun AB (publ) (STO:GIGA) shares are down a considerable 27% in the last month, which continues a horrid run for the company. The recent drop completes a disastrous twelve months for shareholders, who are sitting on a 79% loss during that time.

Since its price has dipped substantially, Gigasun may look like a strong buying opportunity at present with its price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of 0.9x, considering almost half of all companies in the Renewable Energy industry in Sweden have P/S ratios greater than 3.3x and even P/S higher than 7x aren't out of the ordinary. Although, it's not wise to just take the P/S at face value as there may be an explanation why it's so limited.

See our latest analysis for Gigasun

How Has Gigasun Performed Recently?

Gigasun could be doing better as it's been growing revenue less than most other companies lately. The P/S ratio is probably low because investors think this lacklustre revenue performance isn't going to get any better. If this is the case, then existing shareholders will probably struggle to get excited about the future direction of the share price.

Want the full picture on analyst estimates for the company? Then our free report on Gigasun will help you uncover what's on the horizon.

Is There Any Revenue Growth Forecasted For Gigasun?

There's an inherent assumption that a company should far underperform the industry for P/S ratios like Gigasun's to be considered reasonable.

Taking a look back first, we see that the company managed to grow revenues by a handy 14% last year. The latest three year period has also seen an excellent 106% overall rise in revenue, aided somewhat by its short-term performance. So we can start by confirming that the company has done a great job of growing revenues over that time.

Looking ahead now, revenue is anticipated to climb by 18% each year during the coming three years according to the sole analyst following the company. Meanwhile, the rest of the industry is forecast to expand by 71% per annum, which is noticeably more attractive.

In light of this, it's understandable that Gigasun's P/S sits below the majority of other companies. It seems most investors are expecting to see limited future growth and are only willing to pay a reduced amount for the stock.

The Final Word

Having almost fallen off a cliff, Gigasun's share price has pulled its P/S way down as well. 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.

We've established that Gigasun maintains its low P/S on the weakness of its forecast growth being lower than the wider industry, as expected. Right now shareholders are accepting the low P/S as they concede future revenue probably won't provide any pleasant surprises. Unless these conditions improve, they will continue to form a barrier for the share price around these levels.

You should always think about risks. Case in point, we've spotted 3 warning signs for Gigasun you should be aware of.

If companies with solid past earnings growth is up your alley, 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.