TBK & Sons Holdings Limited (HKG:1960) Stock Rockets 25% As Investors Are Less Pessimistic Than Expected

TBK & Sons Holdings Limited (HKG:1960) shares have had a really impressive month, gaining 25% after a shaky period beforehand. Unfortunately, the gains of the last month did little to right the losses of the last year with the stock still down 42% over that time.

Even after such a large jump in price, you could still be forgiven for feeling indifferent about TBK & Sons Holdings' P/S ratio of 0.3x, since the median price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio for the Energy Services industry in Hong Kong is also close to 0.4x. 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.

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See our latest analysis for TBK & Sons Holdings

What Does TBK & Sons Holdings' P/S Mean For Shareholders?

TBK & Sons Holdings certainly has been doing a great job lately as it's been growing its revenue at a really rapid pace. It might be that many expect the strong revenue performance to wane, which has kept the share price, and thus the P/S ratio, from rising. Those who are bullish on TBK & Sons Holdings will be hoping that this isn't the case, so that they can pick up the stock at a lower valuation.

Is There Some Revenue Growth Forecasted For TBK & Sons Holdings?

There's an inherent assumption that a company should be matching the industry for P/S ratios like TBK & Sons Holdings' to be considered reasonable.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 105% gain to the company's top line. Despite this strong recent growth, it's still struggling to catch up as its three-year revenue frustratingly shrank by 43% overall. So unfortunately, we have to acknowledge that the company has not done a great job of growing revenues over that time.

In contrast to the company, the rest of the industry is expected to grow by 9.6% over the next year, which really puts the company's recent medium-term revenue decline into perspective.

With this in mind, we find it worrying that TBK & Sons Holdings' P/S exceeds that of its industry peers. It seems most investors are ignoring the recent poor growth rate and are hoping for a turnaround in the company's business prospects. There's a good chance existing shareholders are setting themselves up for future disappointment if the P/S falls to levels more in line with the recent negative growth rates.

The Bottom Line On TBK & Sons Holdings' P/S

TBK & Sons Holdings' stock has a lot of momentum behind it lately, which has brought its P/S level with the rest of the industry. We'd say the price-to-sales ratio's power isn't primarily as a valuation instrument but rather to gauge current investor sentiment and future expectations.

Our look at TBK & Sons Holdings revealed its shrinking revenues over the medium-term haven't impacted the P/S as much as we anticipated, given the industry is set to grow. When we see revenue heading backwards in the context of growing industry forecasts, it'd make sense to expect a possible share price decline on the horizon, sending the moderate P/S lower. Unless the the circumstances surrounding the recent medium-term improve, it wouldn't be wrong to expect a a difficult period ahead for the company's shareholders.

Before you take the next step, you should know about the 2 warning signs for TBK & Sons Holdings (1 shouldn't be ignored!) that we have uncovered.

If these risks are making you reconsider your opinion on TBK & Sons Holdings, explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there.

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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.