Strong Petrochemical Holdings Limited (HKG:852) shareholders won't be pleased to see that the share price has had a very rough month, dropping 38% and undoing the prior period's positive performance. The good news is that in the last year, the stock has shone bright like a diamond, gaining 142%.

Although its price has dipped substantially, there still wouldn't be many who think Strong Petrochemical Holdings' price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of 0.3x is worth a mention when the median P/S in Hong Kong's Oil and Gas industry is similar at about 0.8x. Although, it's not wise to simply ignore the P/S without explanation as investors may be disregarding a distinct opportunity or a costly mistake.

View our latest analysis for Strong Petrochemical Holdings

How Strong Petrochemical Holdings Has Been Performing

Recent times have been quite advantageous for Strong Petrochemical Holdings as its revenue has been rising very briskly. It might be that many expect the strong revenue performance to wane, which has kept the share price, and thus the P/S ratio, from rising. If that doesn't eventuate, then existing shareholders have reason to be feeling optimistic about the future direction of the share price.

We don't have analyst forecasts, but you can see how recent trends are setting up the company for the future by checking out our free report on Strong Petrochemical Holdings' earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What Are Revenue Growth Metrics Telling Us About The P/S?

Strong Petrochemical Holdings' P/S ratio would be typical for a company that's only expected to deliver moderate growth, and importantly, perform in line with the industry.

Taking a look back first, we see that the company grew revenue by an impressive 79% last year. However, this wasn't enough as the latest three year period has seen the company endure a nasty 18% drop in revenue in aggregate. Therefore, it's fair to say the revenue growth recently has been undesirable for the company.

In contrast to the company, the rest of the industry is expected to grow by 5.1% over the next year, which really puts the company's recent medium-term revenue decline into perspective.

With this in mind, we find it worrying that Strong Petrochemical Holdings' P/S exceeds that of its industry peers. Apparently many investors in the company are way less bearish than recent times would indicate and aren't willing to let go of their stock right now. Only the boldest would assume these prices are sustainable as a continuation of recent revenue trends is likely to weigh on the share price eventually.

What Does Strong Petrochemical Holdings' P/S Mean For Investors?

Strong Petrochemical Holdings' plummeting stock price has brought its P/S back to a similar region as the rest of the industry. While the price-to-sales ratio shouldn't be the defining factor in whether you buy a stock or not, it's quite a capable barometer of revenue expectations.

We find it unexpected that Strong Petrochemical Holdings trades at a P/S ratio that is comparable to the rest of the industry, despite experiencing declining revenues during the medium-term, while the industry as a whole is expected to grow. When we see revenue heading backwards in the context of growing industry forecasts, it'd make sense to expect a possible share price decline on the horizon, sending the moderate P/S lower. If recent medium-term revenue trends continue, it will place shareholders' investments at risk and potential investors in danger of paying an unnecessary premium.

You should always think about risks. Case in point, we've spotted 4 warning signs for Strong Petrochemical Holdings you should be aware of, and 1 of them is concerning.

Of course, profitable companies with a history of great earnings growth are generally safer bets. So you may wish to see this free collection of other companies that have reasonable P/E ratios and have grown earnings strongly.

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