When close to half the companies in China have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") above 34x, you may consider Maccura Biotechnology Co.Ltd (SZSE:300463) as an attractive investment with its 26.1x P/E ratio. Although, it's not wise to just take the P/E at face value as there may be an explanation why it's limited.

Recent times haven't been advantageous for Maccura BiotechnologyLtd as its earnings have been falling quicker than most other companies. The P/E is probably low because investors think this poor earnings performance isn't going to improve at all. You'd much rather the company wasn't bleeding earnings if you still believe in the business. Or at the very least, you'd be hoping the earnings slide doesn't get any worse if your plan is to pick up some stock while it's out of favour.

How Is Maccura BiotechnologyLtd's Growth Trending?

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

Retrospectively, the last year delivered a frustrating 29% decrease to the company's bottom line. As a result, earnings from three years ago have also fallen 69% overall. So unfortunately, we have to acknowledge that the company has not done a great job of growing earnings over that time.

Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to climb by 25% each year during the coming three years according to the three analysts following the company. Meanwhile, the rest of the market is forecast to only expand by 19% each year, which is noticeably less attractive.

With this information, we find it odd that Maccura BiotechnologyLtd 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 Final Word

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

Our examination of Maccura BiotechnologyLtd's analyst forecasts revealed that its superior earnings outlook isn't contributing to its P/E anywhere near as much as we would have predicted. There could be some major unobserved threats to earnings preventing the P/E ratio from matching the positive outlook. It appears many are indeed anticipating earnings instability, because these conditions should normally provide a boost to the share price.

It is also worth noting that we have found 1 warning sign for Maccura BiotechnologyLtd that you need to take into consideration.

Of course, you might also be able to find a better stock than Maccura BiotechnologyLtd. So you may wish to see this free collection of other companies that have reasonable P/E ratios and have grown earnings strongly.

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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.