When close to half the companies in India have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") below 25x, you may consider Nuvoco Vistas Corporation Limited (NSE:NUVOCO) as a stock to avoid entirely with its 44.4x P/E ratio. However, the P/E might be quite high for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.
With earnings growth that's superior to most other companies of late, Nuvoco Vistas has been doing relatively well. The P/E is probably high because investors think this strong earnings performance will continue. You'd really hope so, otherwise you're paying a pretty hefty price for no particular reason.
View our latest analysis for Nuvoco Vistas
In order to justify its P/E ratio, Nuvoco Vistas would need to produce outstanding growth well in excess of the market.
Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 461% gain to the company's bottom line. Still, EPS has barely risen at all from three years ago in total, which is not ideal. Therefore, it's fair to say that earnings growth has been inconsistent recently for the company.
Turning to the outlook, the next three years should generate growth of 36% per annum as estimated by the analysts watching the company. That's shaping up to be materially higher than the 20% each year growth forecast for the broader market.
With this information, we can see why Nuvoco Vistas is trading at such a high P/E compared to the market. Apparently shareholders aren't keen to offload something that is potentially eyeing a more prosperous future.
Using the price-to-earnings 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 Nuvoco Vistas maintains its high P/E on the strength of its forecast growth being higher than the wider market, as expected. 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 settle on your opinion, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Nuvoco Vistas that you should be aware of.
It's important to make sure you look for a great company, not just the first idea you come across. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and 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.