Risks To Shareholder Returns Are Elevated At These Prices For Emerald Holding, Inc. (NYSE:EEX)

With a median price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of close to 1x in the Media industry in the United States, you could be forgiven for feeling indifferent about Emerald Holding, Inc.'s (NYSE:EEX) P/S ratio, which comes in at about the same. Although, it's not wise to simply ignore the P/S without explanation as investors may be disregarding a distinct opportunity or a costly mistake.

See our latest analysis for Emerald Holding

What Does Emerald Holding's P/S Mean For Shareholders?

Emerald Holding certainly has been doing a good job lately as it's been growing revenue more than most other companies. Perhaps the market is expecting this level of performance to taper off, keeping the P/S from soaring. If the company manages to stay the course, then investors should be rewarded with a share price that matches its revenue figures.

If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report on Emerald Holding.

Do Revenue Forecasts Match The P/S Ratio?

Emerald Holding's P/S ratio would be typical for a company that's only expected to deliver moderate growth, and importantly, perform in line with the industry.

If we review the last year of revenue growth, the company posted a terrific increase of 37%. The latest three year period has also seen an excellent 134% overall rise in revenue, aided by its short-term performance. So we can start by confirming that the company has done a great job of growing revenue over that time.

Shifting to the future, estimates from the four analysts covering the company suggest revenue should grow by 14% over the next year. With the industry predicted to deliver 29% growth, the company is positioned for a weaker revenue result.

With this information, we find it interesting that Emerald Holding is trading at a fairly similar P/S compared to the industry. It seems most investors are ignoring the fairly limited growth expectations and are willing to pay up for exposure to the stock. Maintaining these prices will be difficult to achieve as this level of revenue growth is likely to weigh down the shares eventually.

The Final Word

While the price-to-sales ratio shouldn't be the defining factor in whether you buy a stock or not, it's quite a capable barometer of revenue expectations.

Given that Emerald Holding's revenue growth projections are relatively subdued in comparison to the wider industry, it comes as a surprise to see it trading at its current P/S ratio. When we see companies with a relatively weaker revenue outlook compared to the industry, we suspect the share price is at risk of declining, sending the moderate P/S lower. Circumstances like this present a risk to current and prospective investors who may see share prices fall if the low revenue growth impacts the sentiment.

It is also worth noting that we have found 4 warning signs for Emerald Holding (2 are a bit concerning!) that you need to take into consideration.

If you're unsure about the strength of Emerald Holding's 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.