Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (HKG:981) shares have continued their recent momentum with a 25% gain in the last month alone. Looking back a bit further, it's encouraging to see the stock is up 64% in the last year.

After such a large jump in price, Semiconductor Manufacturing International may be sending very bearish signals at the moment with a price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 59.8x, since almost half of all companies in Hong Kong have P/E ratios under 9x and even P/E's lower than 5x are not unusual. Although, it's not wise to just take the P/E at face value as there may be an explanation why it's so lofty.

While the market has experienced earnings growth lately, Semiconductor Manufacturing International's earnings have gone into reverse gear, which is not great. One possibility is that the P/E is high because investors think this poor earnings performance will turn the corner. If not, then existing shareholders may be extremely nervous about the viability of the share price.

Check out our latest analysis for Semiconductor Manufacturing International

Keen to find out how analysts think Semiconductor Manufacturing International's future stacks up against the industry? In that case, our free report is a great place to start.

Does Growth Match The High P/E?

There's an inherent assumption that a company should far outperform the market for P/E ratios like Semiconductor Manufacturing International's to be considered reasonable.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered a frustrating 50% decrease to the company's bottom line. The last three years don't look nice either as the company has shrunk EPS by 61% in aggregate. So unfortunately, we have to acknowledge that the company has not done a great job of growing earnings over that time.

Shifting to the future, estimates from the analysts covering the company suggest earnings should grow by 34% per year over the next three years. Meanwhile, the rest of the market is forecast to only expand by 12% each year, which is noticeably less attractive.

With this information, we can see why Semiconductor Manufacturing International is trading at such a high P/E compared to the market. It seems most investors are expecting this strong future growth and are willing to pay more for the stock.

The Key Takeaway

Semiconductor Manufacturing International's P/E is flying high just like its stock has during the last month. Using the price-to-earnings ratio alone to determine if you should sell your stock isn't sensible, however it can be a practical guide to the company's future prospects.

As we suspected, our examination of Semiconductor Manufacturing International's analyst forecasts revealed that its superior earnings outlook is contributing to its high P/E. Right now shareholders are comfortable with the P/E as they are quite confident future earnings aren't under threat. Unless these conditions change, they will continue to provide strong support to the share price.

Having said that, be aware Semiconductor Manufacturing International is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis, you should know about.

You might be able to find a better investment than Semiconductor Manufacturing International. 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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