Yahoo Finance Is Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corporation Limited (NZSE:FPH) Attractive At Its Current PE Ratio?
This analysis is intended to introduce important early concepts to people who are starting to invest and want to begin learning about how to value company based on its current earnings and what are the drawbacks of this method.
Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corporation Limited (NZSE:FPH) trades with a trailing P/E of 47.6, which is higher than the industry average of 41.9. While this might not seem positive, it is important to understand the assumptions behind the P/E ratio before you make any investment decisions. In this article, I will break down what the P/E ratio is, how to interpret it and what to watch out for.
Check out our latest analysis for Fisher & Paykel Healthcare
Breaking down the P/E ratio
The P/E ratio is one of many ratios used in relative valuation. By comparing a stock’s price per share to its earnings per share, we are able to see how much investors are paying for each dollar of the company’s earnings.
P/E Calculation for FPH
Price-Earnings Ratio = Price per share ÷ Earnings per share
FPH Price-Earnings Ratio = NZ$15.89 ÷ NZ$0.334 = 47.6x
On its own, the P/E ratio doesn’t tell you much; however, it becomes extremely useful when you compare it with other similar companies. Our goal is to compare the stock’s P/E ratio to the average of companies that have similar attributes to FPH, such as company lifetime and products sold. A quick method of creating a peer group is to use companies in the same industry, which is what I will do. Since FPH’s P/E of 47.6 is higher than its industry peers (41.9), it means that investors are paying more for each dollar of FPH’s earnings. Since the sector in is relatively small, I’ve included similar companies in the wider region in order to get a better idea of the multiple, which is a median of profitable companies of companies such as , and . You could think of it like this: the market is pricing FPH as if it is a stronger company than the average of its industry group.
A few caveats
However, it is important to note that our examination of the stock is based on certain assumptions. Firstly, that our peer group contains companies that are similar to FPH. If this isn’t the case, the difference in P/E could be due to other factors. Take, for example, the scenario where Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corporation Limited is growing profits more quickly than the average comparable company. In that case, the market may be correct to value it on a higher P/E ratio. Of course, it is possible that the stocks we are comparing with FPH are not fairly valued. So while we can reasonably surmise that it is optimistically valued relative to a peer group, it might be fairly valued, if the peer group is undervalued.
What this means for you:
If your personal research into the stock confirms what the P/E ratio is telling you, it might be a good time to rebalance your portfolio and reduce your holdings in FPH. But keep in mind that the usefulness of relative valuation depends on whether you are comfortable with making the assumptions I mentioned above. Remember that basing your investment decision off one metric alone is certainly not sufficient. There are many things I have not taken into account in this article and the PE ratio is very one-dimensional. If you have not done so already, I highly recommend you to complete your research by taking a look at the following:
Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for FPH’s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for FPH’s outlook.
Past Track Record: Has FPH been consistently performing well irrespective of the ups and downs in the market? Go into more detail in the past performance analysis and take a look at the free visual representations of FPH’s historicals for more clarity.
Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore our free list of these great stocks here.
To help readers see past the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements.
The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned. For errors that warrant correction please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com.
