With a price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 17.4x Shanghai QiFan Cable Co., Ltd (SHSE:605222) may be sending bullish signals at the moment, given that almost half of all companies in China have P/E ratios greater than 28x and even P/E's higher than 52x are not unusual. Although, it's not wise to just take the P/E at face value as there may be an explanation why it's limited.

Shanghai QiFan Cable could be doing better as its earnings have been going backwards lately while most other companies have been seeing positive earnings growth. The P/E is probably low because investors think this poor earnings performance isn't going to get any better. If this is the case, then existing shareholders will probably struggle to get excited about the future direction of the share price.

Is There Any Growth For Shanghai QiFan Cable?

The only time you'd be truly comfortable seeing a P/E as low as Shanghai QiFan Cable's is when the company's growth is on track to lag the market.

If we review the last year of earnings, dishearteningly the company's profits fell to the tune of 5.0%. As a result, earnings from three years ago have also fallen 33% overall. Accordingly, shareholders would have felt downbeat about the medium-term rates of earnings growth.

Turning to the outlook, the next three years should generate growth of 32% per year as estimated by the lone analyst watching the company. Meanwhile, the rest of the market is forecast to only expand by 24% per year, which is noticeably less attractive.

With this information, we find it odd that Shanghai QiFan Cable is trading at a P/E lower than the market. It looks like most investors are not convinced at all that the company can achieve future growth expectations.

The Bottom Line On Shanghai QiFan Cable's P/E

Generally, our preference is to limit the use of the price-to-earnings ratio to establishing what the market thinks about the overall health of a company.

We've established that Shanghai QiFan Cable currently trades on a much lower than expected P/E since its forecast growth is higher than the wider market. There could be some major unobserved threats to earnings preventing the P/E ratio from matching the positive outlook. At least price risks look to be very low, but investors seem to think future earnings could see a lot of volatility.

You should always think about risks. Case in point, we've spotted 3 warning signs for Shanghai QiFan Cable you should be aware of, and 1 of them is a bit concerning.

You might be able to find a better investment than Shanghai QiFan Cable. If you want a selection of possible candidates, check out this free list of interesting companies that trade on a low P/E (but have proven they can grow earnings).

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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.