It's not a stretch to say that Trinity Industries, Inc.'s (NYSE:TRN) price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 16x right now seems quite "middle-of-the-road" compared to the market in the United States, where the median P/E ratio is around 18x. While this might not raise any eyebrows, if the P/E ratio is not justified investors could be missing out on a potential opportunity or ignoring looming disappointment.

Trinity Industries 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 wane, which has kept the P/E from rising. If you like the company, you'd be hoping this isn't the case so that you could potentially pick up some stock while it's not quite in favour.

View our latest analysis for Trinity Industries

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

Is There Some Growth For Trinity Industries?

The only time you'd be comfortable seeing a P/E like Trinity Industries' is when the company's growth is tracking the market closely.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 27% gain to the company's bottom line. The strong recent performance means it was also able to grow EPS by 380% in total over the last three years. Therefore, it's fair to say the earnings growth recently has been superb for the company.

Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to slump, contracting by 12% during the coming year according to the dual analysts following the company. With the market predicted to deliver 14% growth , that's a disappointing outcome.

With this information, we find it concerning that Trinity Industries is trading at a fairly similar P/E to the market. Apparently many investors in the company reject the analyst cohort's pessimism and aren't willing to let go of their stock right now. Only the boldest would assume these prices are sustainable as these declining earnings are likely to weigh on the share price eventually.

The Key Takeaway

We'd say the price-to-earnings ratio's power isn't primarily as a valuation instrument but rather to gauge current investor sentiment and future expectations.

Our examination of Trinity Industries' analyst forecasts revealed that its outlook for shrinking earnings 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 are unlikely to support a more positive sentiment for long. Unless these conditions improve, it's challenging to accept these prices as being reasonable.

Having said that, be aware Trinity Industries is showing 4 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 1 of those can't be ignored.

If P/E ratios interest you, you may wish to see this free collection of other companies with strong earnings growth and low P/E ratios.

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