When close to half the companies in Hong Kong have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") above 10x, you may consider China Merchants Port Holdings Company Limited (HKG:144) as an attractive investment with its 6.8x P/E ratio. However, the P/E might be low for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.

China Merchants Port Holdings has been struggling lately as its earnings have declined faster than most other companies. The P/E is probably low because investors think this poor earnings performance isn't going to improve at all. If you still like the company, you'd want its earnings trajectory to turn around before making any decisions. If not, then existing shareholders will probably struggle to get excited about the future direction of the share price.

See our latest analysis for China Merchants Port Holdings

Does Growth Match The Low P/E?

There's an inherent assumption that a company should underperform the market for P/E ratios like China Merchants Port Holdings' to be considered reasonable.

If we review the last year of earnings, dishearteningly the company's profits fell to the tune of 28%. Still, the latest three year period has seen an excellent 53% overall rise in EPS, in spite of its unsatisfying short-term performance. Accordingly, while they would have preferred to keep the run going, shareholders would probably welcome the medium-term rates of earnings growth.

Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to climb by 4.7% per annum during the coming three years according to the ten analysts following the company. With the market predicted to deliver 16% growth each year, the company is positioned for a weaker earnings result.

In light of this, it's understandable that China Merchants Port Holdings' P/E sits below the majority of other companies. Apparently many shareholders weren't comfortable holding on while the company is potentially eyeing a less prosperous future.

The Final Word

We'd say the price-to-earnings ratio's power isn't primarily as a valuation instrument but rather to gauge current investor sentiment and future expectations.

As we suspected, our examination of China Merchants Port Holdings' 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. It's hard to see the share price rising strongly in the near future under these circumstances.

Before you take the next step, you should know about the 2 warning signs for China Merchants Port Holdings that we have uncovered.

If these risks are making you reconsider your opinion on China Merchants Port Holdings, 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.