When you see that almost half of the companies in the Commercial Services industry in the United States have price-to-sales ratios (or "P/S") below 1.4x, MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE:MSA) looks to be giving off strong sell signals with its 3.7x P/S ratio. However, the P/S might be quite high for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.

What Does MSA Safety's Recent Performance Look Like?

Recent revenue growth for MSA Safety has been in line with the industry. Perhaps the market is expecting future revenue performance to improve, justifying the currently elevated P/S. However, if this isn't the case, investors might get caught out paying too much for the stock.

Is There Enough Revenue Growth Forecasted For MSA Safety?

In order to justify its P/S ratio, MSA Safety would need to produce outstanding growth that's well in excess of the industry.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered a decent 8.8% gain to the company's revenues. Pleasingly, revenue has also lifted 35% in aggregate from three years ago, partly thanks to the last 12 months of growth. Accordingly, shareholders would have definitely welcomed those medium-term rates of revenue growth.

Turning to the outlook, the next year should generate growth of 3.6% as estimated by the dual analysts watching the company. That's shaping up to be materially lower than the 7.2% growth forecast for the broader industry.

With this information, we find it concerning that MSA Safety is trading at a P/S higher than the industry. 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. Only the boldest would assume these prices are sustainable as this level of revenue growth is likely to weigh heavily on the share price eventually.

What We Can Learn From MSA Safety's P/S?

While the price-to-sales ratio shouldn't be the defining factor in whether you buy a stock or not, it's quite a capable barometer of revenue expectations.

We've concluded that MSA Safety currently trades on a much higher than expected P/S since its forecast growth is lower than the wider industry. The weakness in the company's revenue estimate doesn't bode well for the elevated P/S, which could take a fall if the revenue sentiment doesn't improve. Unless these conditions improve markedly, it's very challenging to accept these prices as being reasonable.

Don't forget that there may be other risks. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for MSA Safety that you should be aware of.

If you're unsure about the strength of MSA Safety's business, why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals for some other companies you may have missed.

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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.