When close to half the companies in the United States have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") below 16x, you may consider Full Truck Alliance Co. Ltd. (NYSE:YMM) as a stock to avoid entirely with its 26.1x P/E ratio. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the highly elevated P/E.

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With earnings growth that's superior to most other companies of late, Full Truck Alliance has been doing relatively well. It seems that many are expecting the strong earnings performance to persist, which has raised the P/E. If not, then existing shareholders might be a little nervous about the viability of the share price.

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What Are Growth Metrics Telling Us About The High P/E?

In order to justify its P/E ratio, Full Truck Alliance would need to produce outstanding growth well in excess of the market.

If we review the last year of earnings growth, the company posted a terrific increase of 41%. Still, EPS has barely risen at all from three years ago in total, which is not ideal. Therefore, it's fair to say that earnings growth has been inconsistent recently for the company.

Shifting to the future, estimates from the analysts covering the company suggest earnings should grow by 38% each year over the next three years. With the market only predicted to deliver 11% per annum, the company is positioned for a stronger earnings result.

With this information, we can see why Full Truck Alliance 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 Bottom Line On Full Truck Alliance's P/E

We'd say the price-to-earnings ratio's power isn't primarily as a valuation instrument but rather to gauge current investor sentiment and future expectations.

As we suspected, our examination of Full Truck Alliance'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.

Many other vital risk factors can be found on the company's balance sheet. Our free balance sheet analysis for Full Truck Alliance with six simple checks will allow you to discover any risks that could be an issue.

You might be able to find a better investment than Full Truck Alliance. 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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