To the annoyance of some shareholders, Alset Inc. (NASDAQ:AEI) shares are down a considerable 26% in the last month, which continues a horrid run for the company. The recent drop completes a disastrous twelve months for shareholders, who are sitting on a 69% loss during that time.

Since its price has dipped substantially, Alset may be sending bullish signals at the moment with its price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of 0.2x, since almost half of all companies in the Real Estate industry in the United States have P/S ratios greater than 1.9x and even P/S higher than 10x are not unusual. Although, it's not wise to just take the P/S at face value as there may be an explanation why it's limited.

What Does Alset's P/S Mean For Shareholders?

Recent times have been quite advantageous for Alset as its revenue has been rising very briskly. Perhaps the market is expecting future revenue performance to dwindle, which has kept the P/S suppressed. Those who are bullish on Alset will be hoping that this isn't the case, so that they can pick up the stock at a lower valuation.

Is There Any Revenue Growth Forecasted For Alset?

There's an inherent assumption that a company should underperform the industry for P/S ratios like Alset's to be considered reasonable.

Taking a look back first, we see that the company's revenues underwent some rampant growth over the last 12 months. Pleasingly, revenue has also lifted 36% in aggregate from three years ago, thanks to the last 12 months of explosive growth. Therefore, it's fair to say the revenue growth recently has been superb for the company.

This is in contrast to the rest of the industry, which is expected to grow by 13% over the next year, materially higher than the company's recent medium-term annualised growth rates.

With this in consideration, it's easy to understand why Alset's P/S falls short of the mark set by its industry peers. It seems most investors are expecting to see the recent limited growth rates continue into the future and are only willing to pay a reduced amount for the stock.

What Does Alset's P/S Mean For Investors?

The southerly movements of Alset's shares means its P/S is now sitting at a pretty low level. While the price-to-sales ratio shouldn't be the defining factor in whether you buy a stock or not, it's quite a capable barometer of revenue expectations.

Our examination of Alset confirms that the company's revenue trends over the past three-year years are a key factor in its low price-to-sales ratio, as we suspected, given they fall short of current industry expectations. At this stage investors feel the potential for an improvement in revenue isn't great enough to justify a higher P/S ratio. Unless the recent medium-term conditions improve, they will continue to form a barrier for the share price around these levels.

And what about other risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Alset (of which 2 can't be ignored!) you should know about.

If you're unsure about the strength of Alset'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.