The Dyna-Mac Holdings Ltd. (SGX:NO4) share price has done very well over the last month, posting an excellent gain of 26%. Looking back a bit further, it's encouraging to see the stock is up 69% in the last year.
Even after such a large jump in price, you could still be forgiven for feeling indifferent about Dyna-Mac Holdings' P/E ratio of 13.1x, since the median price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio in Singapore is also close to 11x. Although, it's not wise to simply ignore the P/E without explanation as investors may be disregarding a distinct opportunity or a costly mistake.
With earnings growth that's superior to most other companies of late, Dyna-Mac Holdings has been doing relatively well. It might be that many expect the strong earnings performance to wane, which has kept the P/E from rising. If not, then existing shareholders have reason to be feeling optimistic about the future direction of the share price.
Does Growth Match The P/E?
There's an inherent assumption that a company should be matching the market for P/E ratios like Dyna-Mac Holdings' to be considered reasonable.
Taking a look back first, we see that the company grew earnings per share by an impressive 183% last year. Still, EPS has barely risen at all from three years ago in total, which is not ideal. Accordingly, shareholders probably wouldn't have been overly satisfied with the unstable medium-term growth rates.
Turning to the outlook, the next three years should generate growth of 7.3% per annum as estimated by the lone analyst watching the company. With the market predicted to deliver 9.9% growth per year, the company is positioned for a weaker earnings result.
With this information, we find it interesting that Dyna-Mac Holdings is trading at a fairly similar P/E to the market. It seems most investors are ignoring the fairly limited growth expectations and are willing to pay up for exposure to the stock. These shareholders may be setting themselves up for future disappointment if the P/E falls to levels more in line with the growth outlook.
The Key Takeaway
Dyna-Mac Holdings' stock has a lot of momentum behind it lately, which has brought its P/E level with the market. While the price-to-earnings ratio shouldn't be the defining factor in whether you buy a stock or not, it's quite a capable barometer of earnings expectations.
Our examination of Dyna-Mac Holdings' analyst forecasts revealed that its inferior earnings outlook isn't impacting its P/E as much as we would have predicted. Right now we are uncomfortable with the P/E as the predicted future earnings aren't likely to support a more positive sentiment for long. This places shareholders' investments at risk and potential investors in danger of paying an unnecessary premium.
And what about other risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Dyna-Mac Holdings you should know about.
Of course, you might also be able to find a better stock than Dyna-Mac Holdings. So you may wish to see this free collection of other companies that have reasonable P/E ratios and have grown earnings strongly.
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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.
