Yahoo Finance How Does Solon Eiendom's (OB:SOLON) P/E Compare To Its Industry, After The Share Price Drop?
To the annoyance of some shareholders, Solon Eiendom (OB:SOLON) shares are down a considerable 35% in the last month. That drop has capped off a tough year for shareholders, with the share price down 33% in that time.
Assuming nothing else has changed, a lower share price makes a stock more attractive to potential buyers. While the market sentiment towards a stock is very changeable, in the long run, the share price will tend to move in the same direction as earnings per share. The implication here is that long term investors have an opportunity when expectations of a company are too low. Perhaps the simplest way to get a read on investors' expectations of a business is to look at its Price to Earnings Ratio (PE Ratio). Investors have optimistic expectations of companies with higher P/E ratios, compared to companies with lower P/E ratios.
Check out our latest analysis for Solon Eiendom
Does Solon Eiendom Have A Relatively High Or Low P/E For Its Industry?
We can tell from its P/E ratio of 11.98 that there is some investor optimism about Solon Eiendom. You can see in the image below that the average P/E (8.5) for companies in the real estate industry is lower than Solon Eiendom's P/E.
Solon Eiendom's P/E tells us that market participants think the company will perform better than its industry peers, going forward. Clearly the market expects growth, but it isn't guaranteed. So investors should delve deeper. I like to check if company insiders have been buying or selling.
How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios
Earnings growth rates have a big influence on P/E ratios. Earnings growth means that in the future the 'E' will be higher. That means even if the current P/E is high, it will reduce over time if the share price stays flat. So while a stock may look expensive based on past earnings, it could be cheap based on future earnings.
Solon Eiendom saw earnings per share decrease by 18% last year. But it has grown its earnings per share by 43% per year over the last three years. And EPS is down 2.1% a year, over the last 5 years. This could justify a pessimistic P/E.
A Limitation: P/E Ratios Ignore Debt and Cash In The Bank
Don't forget that the P/E ratio considers market capitalization. In other words, it does not consider any debt or cash that the company may have on the balance sheet. The exact same company would hypothetically deserve a higher P/E ratio if it had a strong balance sheet, than if it had a weak one with lots of debt, because a cashed up company can spend on growth.
Such expenditure might be good or bad, in the long term, but the point here is that the balance sheet is not reflected by this ratio.
Is Debt Impacting Solon Eiendom's P/E?
Net debt totals a substantial 146% of Solon Eiendom's market cap. This is a relatively high level of debt, so the stock probably deserves a relatively low P/E ratio. Keep that in mind when comparing it to other companies.
The Verdict On Solon Eiendom's P/E Ratio
Solon Eiendom has a P/E of 12.0. That's higher than the average in its market, which is 9.7. With relatively high debt, and no earnings per share growth over twelve months, it's safe to say the market believes the company will improve its earnings growth in the future. What can be absolutely certain is that the market has become significantly less optimistic about Solon Eiendom over the last month, with the P/E ratio falling from 18.3 back then to 12.0 today. For those who prefer to invest with the flow of momentum, that might be a bad sign, but for a contrarian, it may signal opportunity.
Investors have an opportunity when market expectations about a stock are wrong. If the reality for a company is better than it expects, you can make money by buying and holding for the long term. So this free visualization of the analyst consensus on future earnings could help you make the right decision about whether to buy, sell, or hold.
Of course you might be able to find a better stock than Solon Eiendom. So you may wish to see this free collection of other companies that have grown earnings strongly.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.
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