With a price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 11.1x Onewo Inc. (HKG:2602) may be sending bearish signals at the moment, given that almost half of all companies in Hong Kong have P/E ratios under 8x and even P/E's lower than 5x are not unusual. However, the P/E might be high for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.

Recent times have been pleasing for Onewo as its earnings have risen in spite of the market's earnings going into reverse. It seems that many are expecting the company to continue defying the broader market adversity, which has increased investors' willingness to pay up for the stock. If not, then existing shareholders might be a little nervous about the viability of the share price.

Does Growth Match The High P/E?

Onewo's P/E ratio would be typical for a company that's expected to deliver solid growth, and importantly, perform better than the market.

Taking a look back first, we see that the company grew earnings per share by an impressive 19% last year. EPS has also lifted 13% in aggregate from three years ago, mostly thanks to the last 12 months of growth. Accordingly, shareholders would have probably been satisfied with the medium-term rates of earnings growth.

Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to climb by 19% each year during the coming three years according to the analysts following the company. That's shaping up to be materially higher than the 16% each year growth forecast for the broader market.

With this information, we can see why Onewo is trading at such a high P/E compared to the market. Apparently shareholders aren't keen to offload something that is potentially eyeing a more prosperous future.

What We Can Learn From Onewo's P/E?

Typically, we'd caution against reading too much into price-to-earnings ratios when settling on investment decisions, though it can reveal plenty about what other market participants think about the company.

As we suspected, our examination of Onewo's analyst forecasts revealed that its superior earnings outlook is contributing to its high P/E. At this stage investors feel the potential for a deterioration in earnings isn't great enough to justify a lower P/E ratio. It's hard to see the share price falling strongly in the near future under these circumstances.

Plus, you should also learn about this 1 warning sign we've spotted with Onewo.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking at a few good candidates. So take a peek at this free list of companies with a strong growth track record, trading on a low P/E.

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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.