Emerson Electric Co.'s (NYSE:EMR) Price In Tune With Earnings

Emerson Electric Co.'s (NYSE:EMR) price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 35.2x might make it look like a strong sell right now compared to the market in the United States, where around half of the companies have P/E ratios below 18x and even P/E's below 10x are quite common. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the highly elevated P/E.

Emerson Electric certainly has been doing a good job lately as its earnings growth has been positive while most other companies have been seeing their earnings go backwards. It seems that many are expecting the company to continue defying the broader market adversity, which has increased investors’ willingness to pay up for the stock. You'd really hope so, otherwise you're paying a pretty hefty price for no particular reason.

See our latest analysis for Emerson Electric

Keen to find out how analysts think Emerson Electric's future stacks up against the industry? In that case, our free report is a great place to start.

How Is Emerson Electric's Growth Trending?

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

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 26% gain to the company's bottom line. Still, incredibly EPS has fallen 5.0% in total from three years ago, which is quite disappointing. So unfortunately, we have to acknowledge that the company has not done a great job of growing earnings over that time.

Turning to the outlook, the next three years should generate growth of 17% per annum as estimated by the analysts watching the company. That's shaping up to be materially higher than the 10% per annum growth forecast for the broader market.

With this information, we can see why Emerson Electric is trading at such a high P/E compared to the market. It seems most investors are expecting this strong future growth and are willing to pay more for the stock.

The Final Word

We'd say the price-to-earnings ratio's power isn't primarily as a valuation instrument but rather to gauge current investor sentiment and future expectations.

As we suspected, our examination of Emerson Electric's analyst forecasts revealed that its superior earnings outlook is contributing to its high P/E. Right now shareholders are comfortable with the P/E as they are quite confident future earnings aren't under threat. Unless these conditions change, they will continue to provide strong support to the share price.

Before you take the next step, you should know about the 1 warning sign for Emerson Electric that we have uncovered.

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.

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