When close to half the companies in China have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") above 35x, you may consider Hangzhou Binjiang Real Estate Group Co.,Ltd (SZSE:002244) as a highly attractive investment with its 5.4x P/E ratio. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the highly reduced P/E.

Hangzhou Binjiang Real Estate GroupLtd certainly has been doing a good job lately as its earnings growth has been positive while most other companies have been seeing their earnings go backwards. One possibility is that the P/E is low because investors think the company's earnings are going to fall away like everyone else's soon. If not, then existing shareholders have reason to be quite optimistic about the future direction of the share price.

See our latest analysis for Hangzhou Binjiang Real Estate GroupLtd

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

The only time you'd be truly comfortable seeing a P/E as depressed as Hangzhou Binjiang Real Estate GroupLtd's is when the company's growth is on track to lag the market decidedly.

Taking a look back first, we see that the company managed to grow earnings per share by a handy 11% last year. The latest three year period has also seen an excellent 152% overall rise in EPS, aided somewhat by its short-term performance. So we can start by confirming that the company has done a great job of growing earnings over that time.

Shifting to the future, estimates from the ten analysts covering the company suggest earnings should grow by 18% over the next year. With the market predicted to deliver 44% growth , the company is positioned for a weaker earnings result.

In light of this, it's understandable that Hangzhou Binjiang Real Estate GroupLtd's 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 Bottom Line On Hangzhou Binjiang Real Estate GroupLtd's P/E

Typically, we'd caution against reading too much into price-to-earnings ratios when settling on investment decisions, though it can reveal plenty about what other market participants think about the company.

As we suspected, our examination of Hangzhou Binjiang Real Estate GroupLtd's analyst forecasts revealed that its inferior earnings outlook is contributing to its low P/E. At this stage investors feel the potential for an improvement in earnings isn't great enough to justify a higher P/E ratio. Unless these conditions improve, they will continue to form a barrier for the share price around these levels.

And what about other risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Hangzhou Binjiang Real Estate GroupLtd you should know about.

If these risks are making you reconsider your opinion on Hangzhou Binjiang Real Estate GroupLtd, 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.