Southern Cross Electrical Engineering Limited (ASX:SXE) shares have had a really impressive month, gaining 31% after a shaky period beforehand. The last 30 days bring the annual gain to a very sharp 95%.

Although its price has surged higher, given about half the companies in Australia have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") above 20x, you may still consider Southern Cross Electrical Engineering as an attractive investment with its 17.2x P/E ratio. However, the P/E might be low for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.

Southern Cross Electrical Engineering certainly has been doing a good job lately as it's been growing earnings more than most other companies. It might be that many expect the strong earnings performance to degrade substantially, which has repressed the P/E. If not, then existing shareholders have reason to be quite optimistic about the future direction of the share price.

Check out our latest analysis for Southern Cross Electrical Engineering

If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report on Southern Cross Electrical Engineering.

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

The only time you'd be truly comfortable seeing a P/E as low as Southern Cross Electrical Engineering's is when the company's growth is on track to lag the market.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 44% gain to the company's bottom line. The latest three year period has also seen an excellent 70% overall rise in EPS, aided by its short-term performance. Therefore, it's fair to say the earnings growth recently has been superb for the company.

Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to climb by 8.5% each year during the coming three years according to the three analysts following the company. That's shaping up to be materially lower than the 17% per annum growth forecast for the broader market.

In light of this, it's understandable that Southern Cross Electrical Engineering's P/E sits below the majority of other companies. Apparently many shareholders weren't comfortable holding on while the company is potentially eyeing a less prosperous future.

What We Can Learn From Southern Cross Electrical Engineering's P/E?

Despite Southern Cross Electrical Engineering's shares building up a head of steam, its P/E still lags most other companies. Typically, we'd caution against reading too much into price-to-earnings ratios when settling on investment decisions, though it can reveal plenty about what other market participants think about the company.

As we suspected, our examination of Southern Cross Electrical Engineering's analyst forecasts revealed that its inferior earnings outlook is contributing to its low P/E. Right now shareholders are accepting the low P/E as they concede future earnings probably won't provide any pleasant surprises. It's hard to see the share price rising strongly in the near future under these circumstances.

Before you settle on your opinion, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Southern Cross Electrical Engineering that you should be aware of.

You might be able to find a better investment than Southern Cross Electrical Engineering. If you want a selection of possible candidates, check out this free list of interesting companies that trade on a low P/E (but have proven they can grow earnings).

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