Evercore Inc. (NYSE:EVR) shares have continued their recent momentum with a 25% gain in the last month alone. The last 30 days bring the annual gain to a very sharp 73%.

Following the firm bounce in price, given close to half the companies in the United States have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") below 18x, you may consider Evercore as a stock to avoid entirely with its 36.5x P/E ratio. 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.

Recent times haven't been advantageous for Evercore as its earnings have been falling quicker than most other companies. One possibility is that the P/E is high because investors think the company will turn things around completely and accelerate past most others in the market. If not, then existing shareholders may be very nervous about the viability of the share price.

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

Evercore's P/E ratio would be typical for a company that's expected to deliver very strong growth, and importantly, perform much better than the market.

Taking a look back first, the company's earnings per share growth last year wasn't something to get excited about as it posted a disappointing decline of 34%. The last three years don't look nice either as the company has shrunk EPS by 41% 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 eight analysts covering the company suggest earnings should grow by 28% per annum over the next three years. Meanwhile, the rest of the market is forecast to only expand by 10% per annum, which is noticeably less attractive.

In light of this, it's understandable that Evercore's P/E sits above the majority of other companies. It seems most investors are expecting this strong future growth and are willing to pay more for the stock.

The Bottom Line On Evercore's P/E

Shares in Evercore have built up some good momentum lately, which has really inflated its 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 Evercore'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. It's hard to see the share price falling strongly in the near future under these circumstances.

Before you take the next step, you should know about the 2 warning signs for Evercore that we have uncovered.

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

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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.

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