Lindblad Expeditions Holdings, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:LIND) Shares Bounce 27% But Its Business Still Trails The Industry

Despite an already strong run, Lindblad Expeditions Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LIND) shares have been powering on, with a gain of 27% in the last thirty days. Looking back a bit further, it's encouraging to see the stock is up 73% in the last year.

Although its price has surged higher, Lindblad Expeditions Holdings may still be sending bullish signals at the moment with its price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of 1x, since almost half of all companies in the Hospitality industry in the United States have P/S ratios greater than 1.5x and even P/S higher than 4x are not unusual. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the reduced P/S.

Check out our latest analysis for Lindblad Expeditions Holdings

What Does Lindblad Expeditions Holdings' Recent Performance Look Like?

Recent times haven't been great for Lindblad Expeditions Holdings as its revenue has been rising slower than most other companies. Perhaps the market is expecting the current trend of poor revenue growth to continue, which has kept the P/S suppressed. If this is the case, then existing shareholders will probably struggle to get excited about the future direction of the share price.

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

What Are Revenue Growth Metrics Telling Us About The Low P/S?

Lindblad Expeditions Holdings' P/S ratio would be typical for a company that's only expected to deliver limited growth, and importantly, perform worse than the industry.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered a decent 11% gain to the company's revenues. The latest three year period has seen an incredible overall rise in revenue, even though the last 12 month performance was only fair. Therefore, it's fair to say the revenue growth recently has been superb for the company.

Turning to the outlook, the next year should generate growth of 7.5% as estimated by the four analysts watching the company. With the industry predicted to deliver 12% growth, the company is positioned for a weaker revenue result.

With this in consideration, its clear as to why Lindblad Expeditions Holdings' P/S is falling short industry peers. It seems most investors are expecting to see limited future growth and are only willing to pay a reduced amount for the stock.

What Does Lindblad Expeditions Holdings' P/S Mean For Investors?

Lindblad Expeditions Holdings' stock price has surged recently, but its but its P/S still remains modest. Using the price-to-sales 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.

We've established that Lindblad Expeditions Holdings maintains its low P/S on the weakness of its forecast growth being lower than the wider industry, as expected. Shareholders' pessimism on the revenue prospects for the company seems to be the main contributor to the depressed P/S. Unless these conditions improve, they will continue to form a barrier for the share price around these levels.

And what about other risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Lindblad Expeditions Holdings (of which 1 shouldn't be ignored!) you should know about.

If you're unsure about the strength of Lindblad Expeditions Holdings' business, why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals for some other companies you may have missed.

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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.