Those holding Zhejiang Dongri Limited Company (SHSE:600113) shares would be relieved that the share price has rebounded 27% in the last thirty days, but it needs to keep going to repair the recent damage it has caused to investor portfolios. Unfortunately, the gains of the last month did little to right the losses of the last year with the stock still down 14% over that time.

Even after such a large jump in price, given about half the companies in China have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") above 32x, you may still consider Zhejiang Dongri Limited as a highly attractive investment with its 14.5x P/E ratio. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the highly reduced P/E.

The earnings growth achieved at Zhejiang Dongri Limited over the last year would be more than acceptable for most companies. It might be that many expect the respectable earnings performance to degrade substantially, which has repressed the P/E. If you like the company, you'd be hoping this isn't the case so that you could potentially pick up some stock while it's out of favour.

Is There Any Growth For Zhejiang Dongri Limited?

In order to justify its P/E ratio, Zhejiang Dongri Limited would need to produce anemic growth that's substantially trailing the market.

If we review the last year of earnings growth, the company posted a terrific increase of 28%. The latest three year period has also seen an excellent 446% overall rise in EPS, aided by its short-term performance. So we can start by confirming that the company has done a great job of growing earnings over that time.

This is in contrast to the rest of the market, which is expected to grow by 40% over the next year, materially lower than the company's recent medium-term annualised growth rates.

In light of this, it's peculiar that Zhejiang Dongri Limited's P/E sits below the majority of other companies. It looks like most investors are not convinced the company can maintain its recent growth rates.

The Final Word

Even after such a strong price move, Zhejiang Dongri Limited's P/E still trails the rest of the market significantly. Using the price-to-earnings 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.

Our examination of Zhejiang Dongri Limited revealed its three-year earnings trends aren't contributing to its P/E anywhere near as much as we would have predicted, given they look better than current market expectations. When we see strong earnings with faster-than-market growth, we assume potential risks are what might be placing significant pressure on the P/E ratio. It appears many are indeed anticipating earnings instability, because the persistence of these recent medium-term conditions would normally provide a boost to the share price.

Having said that, be aware Zhejiang Dongri Limited is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis, you should know about.

If you're unsure about the strength of Zhejiang Dongri Limited's business, why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals for some other companies you may have missed.

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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.