Hanvey Group Holdings Limited (HKG:8219) shareholders that were waiting for something to happen have been dealt a blow with a 53% share price drop in the last month. For any long-term shareholders, the last month ends a year to forget by locking in a 59% share price decline.

Even after such a large drop in price, you could still be forgiven for feeling indifferent about Hanvey Group Holdings' P/S ratio of 0.2x, since the median price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio for the Luxury industry in Hong Kong is also close to 0.6x. However, investors might be overlooking a clear opportunity or potential setback if there is no rational basis for the P/S.

How Has Hanvey Group Holdings Performed Recently?

As an illustration, revenue has deteriorated at Hanvey Group Holdings over the last year, which is not ideal at all. It might be that many expect the company to put the disappointing revenue performance behind them over the coming period, which has kept the P/S from falling. If you like the company, you'd at least be hoping this is the case so that you could potentially pick up some stock while it's not quite in favour.

Is There Some Revenue Growth Forecasted For Hanvey Group Holdings?

The only time you'd be comfortable seeing a P/S like Hanvey Group Holdings' is when the company's growth is tracking the industry closely.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered a frustrating 32% decrease to the company's top line. Even so, admirably revenue has lifted 33% in aggregate from three years ago, notwithstanding the last 12 months. So we can start by confirming that the company has generally done a very good job of growing revenue over that time, even though it had some hiccups along the way.

This is in contrast to the rest of the industry, which is expected to grow by 13% over the next year, materially higher than the company's recent medium-term annualised growth rates.

With this in mind, we find it intriguing that Hanvey Group Holdings' P/S is comparable to that of its industry peers. It seems most investors are ignoring the fairly limited recent growth rates and are willing to pay up for exposure to the stock. Maintaining these prices will be difficult to achieve as a continuation of recent revenue trends is likely to weigh down the shares eventually.

The Bottom Line On Hanvey Group Holdings' P/S

Following Hanvey Group Holdings' share price tumble, its P/S is just clinging on to the industry median P/S. It's argued the price-to-sales ratio is an inferior measure of value within certain industries, but it can be a powerful business sentiment indicator.

We've established that Hanvey Group Holdings' average P/S is a bit surprising since its recent three-year growth is lower than the wider industry forecast. Right now we are uncomfortable with the P/S as this revenue performance isn't likely to support a more positive sentiment for long. If recent medium-term revenue trends continue, the probability of a share price decline will become quite substantial, placing shareholders at risk.

Plus, you should also learn about these 3 warning signs we've spotted with Hanvey Group Holdings (including 2 which are a bit concerning).

If companies with solid past earnings growth is up your alley, you may wish to see this free collection of other companies with strong earnings growth and low P/E ratios.

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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.

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