With a price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 14.9x Anhui Zhongding Sealing Parts Co., Ltd. (SZSE:000887) may be sending very bullish signals at the moment, given that almost half of all companies in China have P/E ratios greater than 35x and even P/E's higher than 64x are not unusual. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the highly reduced P/E.

With its earnings growth in positive territory compared to the declining earnings of most other companies, Anhui Zhongding Sealing Parts has been doing quite well of late. It might be that many expect the strong earnings performance to degrade substantially, possibly more than the market, which has repressed the P/E. If you like the company, you'd be hoping this isn't the case so that you could potentially pick up some stock while it's out of favour.

See our latest analysis for Anhui Zhongding Sealing Parts

How Is Anhui Zhongding Sealing Parts' Growth Trending?

The only time you'd be truly comfortable seeing a P/E as depressed as Anhui Zhongding Sealing Parts' is when the company's growth is on track to lag the market decidedly.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 20% gain to the company's bottom line. The strong recent performance means it was also able to grow EPS by 231% in total over the last three years. Therefore, it's fair to say the earnings growth recently has been superb for the company.

Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to climb by 23% during the coming year according to the five analysts following the company. Meanwhile, the rest of the market is forecast to expand by 44%, which is noticeably more attractive.

With this information, we can see why Anhui Zhongding Sealing Parts is trading at a P/E lower than the market. It seems most investors are expecting to see limited future growth and are only willing to pay a reduced amount for the stock.

The Bottom Line On Anhui Zhongding Sealing Parts' P/E

Typically, we'd caution against reading too much into price-to-earnings ratios when settling on investment decisions, though it can reveal plenty about what other market participants think about the company.

As we suspected, our examination of Anhui Zhongding Sealing Parts' analyst forecasts revealed that its inferior earnings outlook is contributing to its low P/E. Right now shareholders are accepting the low P/E as they concede future earnings probably won't provide any pleasant surprises. Unless these conditions improve, they will continue to form a barrier for the share price around these levels.

Plus, you should also learn about this 1 warning sign we've spotted with Anhui Zhongding Sealing Parts.

If you're unsure about the strength of Anhui Zhongding Sealing Parts' 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.