It's not a stretch to say that WEX Inc.'s (NYSE:WEX) price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 19.4x right now seems quite "middle-of-the-road" compared to the market in the United States, where the median P/E ratio is around 17x. 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.

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WEX certainly has been doing a good job lately as it's been growing earnings more than most other companies. 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.

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Does Growth Match The P/E?

In order to justify its P/E ratio, WEX would need to produce growth that's similar to the market.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 22% gain to the company's bottom line. The latest three year period has also seen an excellent 356,451% overall rise in EPS, aided by its short-term performance. Accordingly, shareholders would have probably welcomed those medium-term rates of earnings growth.

Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to climb by 17% per year during the coming three years according to the analysts following the company. Meanwhile, the rest of the market is forecast to only expand by 11% per year, which is noticeably less attractive.

With this information, we find it interesting that WEX is trading at a fairly similar P/E to the market. It may be that most investors aren't convinced the company can achieve future growth expectations.

What We Can Learn From WEX's P/E?

Generally, our preference is to limit the use of the price-to-earnings ratio to establishing what the market thinks about the overall health of a company.

We've established that WEX currently trades on a lower than expected P/E since its forecast growth is higher than the wider market. There could be some unobserved threats to earnings preventing the P/E ratio from matching the positive outlook. It appears some are indeed anticipating earnings instability, because these conditions should normally provide a boost to the share price.

Plus, you should also learn about this 1 warning sign we've spotted with WEX.

If these risks are making you reconsider your opinion on WEX, explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.