To the annoyance of some shareholders, urban-gro, Inc. (NASDAQ:UGRO) shares are down a considerable 29% in the last month, which continues a horrid run for the company.    Instead of being rewarded, shareholders who have already held through the last twelve months are now sitting on a 18% share price drop.  

Since its price has dipped substantially, when close to half the companies operating in the United States' Machinery industry have price-to-sales ratios (or "P/S") above 1.5x, you may consider urban-gro as an enticing stock to check out with its 0.2x P/S ratio.   However, the P/S might be low for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.  

NasdaqCM:UGRO Price to Sales Ratio vs Industry June 11th 2024

What Does urban-gro's P/S Mean For Shareholders?

With revenue growth that's superior to most other companies of late, urban-gro has been doing relatively well.   Perhaps the market is expecting future revenue performance to dive, which has kept the P/S suppressed.  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.    

If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report on urban-gro.

Is There Any Revenue Growth Forecasted For urban-gro?  

There's an inherent assumption that a company should underperform the industry for P/S ratios like urban-gro's to be considered reasonable.  

Retrospectively, the last year delivered a decent 12% gain to the company's revenues.   Pleasingly, revenue has also lifted 109% 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.  

Shifting to the future, estimates from the four analysts covering the company suggest revenue should grow by 30% per annum over the next three years.  With the industry only predicted to deliver 5.4% each year, the company is positioned for a stronger revenue result.

In light of this, it's peculiar that urban-gro's P/S sits below the majority of other companies.  Apparently some shareholders are doubtful of the forecasts and have been accepting significantly lower selling prices.  

The Key Takeaway

urban-gro's recently weak share price has pulled its P/S back below other Machinery companies.      We'd say the price-to-sales ratio's power isn't primarily as a valuation instrument but rather to gauge current investor sentiment and future expectations.

urban-gro's analyst forecasts revealed that its superior revenue outlook isn't contributing to its P/S anywhere near as much as we would have predicted.  There could be some major risk factors that are placing downward pressure on the P/S ratio.  At least price risks look to be very low, but investors seem to think future revenues could see a lot of volatility.    

Before you take the next step, you should know about the 5 warning signs for urban-gro (1 is significant!) that we have uncovered.  

It's important to make sure you look for a great company, not just the first idea you come across. So if growing profitability aligns with your idea of a great company, take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and a low P/E).

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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.