C&D Property Management Group Co. Limited (HKG:2156) shareholders would be excited to see that the share price has had a great month, posting a 26% gain and recovering from prior weakness. Unfortunately, the gains of the last month did little to right the losses of the last year with the stock still down 11% over that time.

Even after such a large jump in price, you could still be forgiven for feeling indifferent about C&D Property Management Group's P/E ratio of 10.3x, since the median price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio in Hong Kong is also close to 10x. However, investors might be overlooking a clear opportunity or potential setback if there is no rational basis for the P/E.

With earnings growth that's superior to most other companies of late, C&D Property Management Group has been doing relatively well. One possibility is that the P/E is moderate because investors think this strong earnings performance might be about to tail off. If not, then existing shareholders have reason to be feeling optimistic about the future direction of the share price.

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

C&D Property Management Group's P/E ratio would be typical for a company that's only expected to deliver moderate growth, and importantly, perform in line with the market.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 87% gain to the company's bottom line. Pleasingly, EPS has also lifted 268% in aggregate from three years ago, thanks to the last 12 months of growth. Accordingly, shareholders would have probably welcomed those medium-term rates of earnings growth.

Turning to the outlook, the next year should generate growth of 4.7% as estimated by the one analyst watching the company. That's shaping up to be materially lower than the 21% growth forecast for the broader market.

With this information, we find it interesting that C&D Property Management Group is trading at a fairly similar P/E to the market. It seems most investors are ignoring the fairly limited growth expectations and are willing to pay up for exposure to the stock. These shareholders may be setting themselves up for future disappointment if the P/E falls to levels more in line with the growth outlook.

The Final Word

C&D Property Management Group appears to be back in favour with a solid price jump getting its P/E back in line with most other companies. It's argued the price-to-earnings ratio is an inferior measure of value within certain industries, but it can be a powerful business sentiment indicator.

We've established that C&D Property Management Group currently trades on a higher than expected P/E since its forecast growth is lower than the wider market. When we see a weak earnings outlook with slower than market growth, we suspect the share price is at risk of declining, sending the moderate P/E lower. This places shareholders' investments at risk and potential investors in danger of paying an unnecessary premium.

You should always think about risks. Case in point, we've spotted 2 warning signs for C&D Property Management Group you should be aware of.

If these risks are making you reconsider your opinion on C&D Property Management Group, 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.