Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc's (NASDAQ:JAZZ) price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 16.1x might make it look like a buy right now compared to the market in the United States, where around half of the companies have P/E ratios above 20x and even P/E's above 35x are quite common. However, the P/E might be low for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.

With earnings growth that's superior to most other companies of late, Jazz Pharmaceuticals has been doing relatively well. It might be that many expect the strong earnings performance to degrade substantially, which has repressed the P/E. If not, then existing shareholders have reason to be quite optimistic about the future direction of the share price.

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

Jazz Pharmaceuticals' P/E ratio would be typical for a company that's only expected to deliver limited growth, and importantly, perform worse than the market.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 489% gain to the company's bottom line. Still, EPS has barely risen at all from three years ago in total, which is not ideal. So it appears to us that the company has had a mixed result in terms of growing earnings over that time.

Turning to the outlook, the next three years should generate growth of 18% per year as estimated by the analysts watching the company. With the market only predicted to deliver 11% each year, the company is positioned for a stronger earnings result.

With this information, we find it odd that Jazz Pharmaceuticals is trading at a P/E lower than the market. It looks like most investors are not convinced at all that the company can achieve future growth expectations.

What We Can Learn From Jazz Pharmaceuticals' P/E?

It's argued the price-to-earnings ratio is an inferior measure of value within certain industries, but it can be a powerful business sentiment indicator.

Our examination of Jazz Pharmaceuticals' 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.

Before you settle on your opinion, we've discovered 3 warning signs for Jazz Pharmaceuticals (1 doesn't sit too well with us!) that you should be aware of.

If these risks are making you reconsider your opinion on Jazz Pharmaceuticals, 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.