Risks Still Elevated At These Prices As Touyun Biotech Group Limited (HKG:1332) Shares Dive 25%

Touyun Biotech Group Limited (HKG:1332) shares have had a horrible month, losing 25% after a relatively good period beforehand. The recent drop completes a disastrous twelve months for shareholders, who are sitting on a 55% loss during that time.

In spite of the heavy fall in price, given close to half the companies operating in Hong Kong's Packaging industry have price-to-sales ratios (or "P/S") below 0.5x, you may still consider Touyun Biotech Group as a stock to potentially avoid with its 1.5x P/S ratio. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the elevated P/S.

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See our latest analysis for Touyun Biotech Group

What Does Touyun Biotech Group's P/S Mean For Shareholders?

For example, consider that Touyun Biotech Group's financial performance has been poor lately as its revenue has been in decline. One possibility is that the P/S is high because investors think the company will still do enough to outperform the broader industry in the near future. You'd really hope so, otherwise you're paying a pretty hefty price for no particular reason.

How Is Touyun Biotech Group's Revenue Growth Trending?

In order to justify its P/S ratio, Touyun Biotech Group would need to produce impressive growth in excess of the industry.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered a frustrating 15% decrease to the company's top line. The last three years don't look nice either as the company has shrunk revenue by 54% in aggregate. Therefore, it's fair to say the revenue growth recently has been undesirable for the company.

Weighing that medium-term revenue trajectory against the broader industry's one-year forecast for expansion of 14% shows it's an unpleasant look.

In light of this, it's alarming that Touyun Biotech Group's P/S sits above the majority of other companies. It seems most investors are ignoring the recent poor growth rate and are hoping for a turnaround in the company's business prospects. Only the boldest would assume these prices are sustainable as a continuation of recent revenue trends is likely to weigh heavily on the share price eventually.

The Bottom Line On Touyun Biotech Group's P/S

Touyun Biotech Group's P/S remain high even after its stock plunged. 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 Touyun Biotech Group revealed its shrinking revenue over the medium-term isn't resulting in a P/S as low as we expected, given the industry is set to grow. When we see revenue heading backwards and underperforming the industry forecasts, we feel the possibility of the share price declining is very real, bringing the P/S back into the realm of reasonability. Unless the recent medium-term conditions improve markedly, investors will have a hard time accepting the share price as fair value.

We don't want to rain on the parade too much, but we did also find 3 warning signs for Touyun Biotech Group (1 is potentially serious!) that you need to be mindful of.

If companies with solid past earnings growth is up your alley, you may wish to see this free collection of other companies with strong earnings growth and low P/E ratios.

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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.