When close to half the companies in the United States have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") above 19x, you may consider Taylor Morrison Home Corporation (NYSE:TMHC) as a highly attractive investment with its 8.9x 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 so limited.

With earnings that are retreating more than the market's of late, Taylor Morrison Home has been very sluggish. It seems that many are expecting the dismal earnings performance to persist, which has repressed the P/E. 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.

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

In order to justify its P/E ratio, Taylor Morrison Home would need to produce anemic growth that's substantially trailing the market.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered a frustrating 4.2% decrease to the company's bottom line. However, a few very strong years before that means that it was still able to grow EPS by an impressive 107% in total over the last three years. Although it's been a bumpy ride, it's still fair to say the earnings growth recently has been more than adequate for the company.

Shifting to the future, estimates from the five analysts covering the company suggest earnings should grow by 17% over the next year. With the market only predicted to deliver 15%, the company is positioned for a stronger earnings result.

With this information, we find it odd that Taylor Morrison Home is trading at a P/E lower than the market. Apparently some shareholders are doubtful of the forecasts and have been accepting significantly lower selling prices.

The Bottom Line On Taylor Morrison Home'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.

Our examination of Taylor Morrison Home'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. When we see a strong earnings outlook with faster-than-market growth, we assume potential risks are what might be placing significant pressure on the P/E ratio. At least price risks look to be very low, but investors seem to think future earnings could see a lot of volatility.

A lot of potential risks can sit within a company's balance sheet. Our free balance sheet analysis for Taylor Morrison Home with six simple checks will allow you to discover any risks that could be an issue.

It's important to make sure you look for a great company, not just the first idea you come across. So 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.