Chengdu Expressway Co., Ltd.'s (HKG:1785) price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 6.1x might make it look like a buy right now compared to the market in Hong Kong, where around half of the companies have P/E ratios above 10x and even P/E's above 20x are quite common. However, the P/E might be low for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.

Chengdu Expressway has been doing a good job lately as it's been growing earnings at a solid pace. One possibility is that the P/E is low because investors think this respectable earnings growth might actually underperform the broader market in the near future. 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 out of favour.

View our latest analysis for Chengdu Expressway

Want the full picture on earnings, revenue and cash flow for the company? Then our free report on Chengdu Expressway will help you shine a light on its historical performance.

Does Growth Match The Low P/E?

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

Taking a look back first, we see that the company managed to grow earnings per share by a handy 14% last year. Although, the latest three year period in total hasn't been as good as it didn't manage to provide any growth at all. So it appears to us that the company has had a mixed result in terms of growing earnings over that time.

In contrast to the company, the rest of the market is expected to grow by 22% over the next year, which really puts the company's recent medium-term earnings decline into perspective.

In light of this, it's understandable that Chengdu Expressway's P/E would sit below the majority of other companies. However, we think shrinking earnings are unlikely to lead to a stable P/E over the longer term, which could set up shareholders for future disappointment. There's potential for the P/E to fall to even lower levels if the company doesn't improve its profitability.

The Bottom Line On Chengdu Expressway's P/E

It's argued the price-to-earnings ratio is an inferior measure of value within certain industries, but it can be a powerful business sentiment indicator.

We've established that Chengdu Expressway maintains its low P/E on the weakness of its sliding earnings over the medium-term, as expected. Right now shareholders are accepting the low P/E as they concede future earnings probably won't provide any pleasant surprises. Unless the recent medium-term conditions improve, they will continue to form a barrier for the share price around these levels.

Before you take the next step, you should know about the 1 warning sign for Chengdu Expressway that we have uncovered.

You might be able to find a better investment than Chengdu Expressway. 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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