There wouldn't be many who think Dover Corporation's (NYSE:DOV) price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 19.8x is worth a mention when the median P/E in the United States is similar at about 18x. Although, it's not wise to simply ignore the P/E without explanation as investors may be disregarding a distinct opportunity or a costly mistake.

With earnings growth that's superior to most other companies of late, Dover has been doing relatively well. One possibility is that the P/E is moderate because investors think this strong earnings performance might be about to tail off. If not, then existing shareholders have reason to be feeling optimistic about the future direction of the share price.

View our latest analysis for Dover

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

Does Growth Match The P/E?

Dover's P/E ratio would be typical for a company that's only expected to deliver moderate growth, and importantly, perform in line with the market.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 35% gain to the company's bottom line. The latest three year period has also seen an excellent 31% 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.

Turning to the outlook, the next three years should bring diminished returns, with earnings decreasing 3.5% each year as estimated by the analysts watching the company. That's not great when the rest of the market is expected to grow by 10% per annum.

In light of this, it's somewhat alarming that Dover's P/E sits in line with the majority of other companies. It seems most investors are hoping for a turnaround in the company's business prospects, but the analyst cohort is not so confident this will happen. There's a good chance these shareholders are setting themselves up for future disappointment if the P/E falls to levels more in line with the negative growth outlook.

The Final Word

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.

Our examination of Dover's 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.

Plus, you should also learn about these 2 warning signs we've spotted with Dover (including 1 which is potentially serious).

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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