It's not a stretch to say that Parsons Corporation's (NYSE:PSN) price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of 1.6x right now seems quite "middle-of-the-road" for companies in the Professional Services industry in the United States, where the median P/S ratio is around 1.4x. Although, it's not wise to simply ignore the P/S without explanation as investors may be disregarding a distinct opportunity or a costly mistake.

How Parsons Has Been Performing

Parsons certainly has been doing a good job lately as it's been growing revenue more than most other companies. Perhaps the market is expecting this level of performance to taper off, keeping the P/S from soaring. If the company manages to stay the course, then investors should be rewarded with a share price that matches its revenue figures.

Do Revenue Forecasts Match The P/S Ratio?

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

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 29% gain to the company's top line. The latest three year period has also seen an excellent 77% overall rise in revenue, aided by its short-term performance. Accordingly, shareholders would have definitely welcomed those medium-term rates of revenue growth.

Shifting to the future, estimates from the eleven analysts covering the company suggest revenue should grow by 11% over the next year. That's shaping up to be materially higher than the 7.5% growth forecast for the broader industry.

With this information, we find it interesting that Parsons is trading at a fairly similar P/S compared to the industry. It may be that most investors aren't convinced the company can achieve future growth expectations.

What Does Parsons' P/S Mean For Investors?

Using the price-to-sales ratio alone to determine if you should sell your stock isn't sensible, however it can be a practical guide to the company's future prospects.

Despite enticing revenue growth figures that outpace the industry, Parsons' P/S isn't quite what we'd expect. When we see a strong revenue outlook, with growth outpacing the industry, we can only assume potential uncertainty around these figures are what might be placing slight pressure on the P/S ratio. It appears some are indeed anticipating revenue instability, because these conditions should normally provide a boost to the share price.

Plus, you should also learn about these 2 warning signs we've spotted with Parsons.

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.