Gansu Golden Solar Co., Ltd (SZSE:300093) shareholders would be excited to see that the share price has had a great month, posting a 38% gain and recovering from prior weakness. But the gains over the last month weren't enough to make shareholders whole, as the share price is still down 9.6% in the last twelve months.

After such a large jump in price, when almost half of the companies in China's Building industry have price-to-sales ratios (or "P/S") below 1.4x, you may consider Gansu Golden Solar as a stock not worth researching with its 10.2x P/S ratio. However, the P/S might be quite high for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.

How Has Gansu Golden Solar Performed Recently?

As an illustration, revenue has deteriorated at Gansu Golden Solar over the last year, which is not ideal at all. Perhaps the market believes the company can do enough to outperform the rest of the industry in the near future, which is keeping the P/S ratio high. You'd really hope so, otherwise you're paying a pretty hefty price for no particular reason.

Is There Enough Revenue Growth Forecasted For Gansu Golden Solar?

Gansu Golden Solar's P/S ratio would be typical for a company that's expected to deliver very strong growth, and importantly, perform much better than the industry.

Taking a look back first, the company's revenue growth last year wasn't something to get excited about as it posted a disappointing decline of 51%. The last three years don't look nice either as the company has shrunk revenue by 20% in aggregate. Therefore, it's fair to say the revenue growth recently has been undesirable for the company.

Weighing that medium-term revenue trajectory against the broader industry's one-year forecast for expansion of 20% shows it's an unpleasant look.

With this in mind, we find it worrying that Gansu Golden Solar's P/S exceeds that of its industry peers. It seems most investors are ignoring the recent poor growth rate and are hoping for a turnaround in the company's business prospects. Only the boldest would assume these prices are sustainable as a continuation of recent revenue trends is likely to weigh heavily on the share price eventually.

The Bottom Line On Gansu Golden Solar's P/S

Shares in Gansu Golden Solar have seen a strong upwards swing lately, which has really helped boost its P/S figure. While the price-to-sales ratio shouldn't be the defining factor in whether you buy a stock or not, it's quite a capable barometer of revenue expectations.

Our examination of Gansu Golden Solar revealed its shrinking revenue over the medium-term isn't resulting in a P/S as low as we expected, given the industry is set to grow. Right now we aren't comfortable with the high P/S as this revenue performance is highly unlikely to support such positive sentiment for long. Unless the recent medium-term conditions improve markedly, investors will have a hard time accepting the share price as fair value.

You always need to take note of risks, for example - Gansu Golden Solar has 4 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

If strong companies turning a profit tickle your fancy, then you'll want to check out this free list of interesting companies that trade on a low P/E (but have proven they can grow earnings).

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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.