With a price-to-earnings (or "P/E") ratio of 31.8x Viva Leisure Limited (ASX:VVA) may be sending very bearish signals at the moment, given that almost half of all companies in Australia have P/E ratios under 17x and even P/E's lower than 10x are not unusual. Although, it's not wise to just take the P/E at face value as there may be an explanation why it's so lofty.

Viva Leisure could be doing better as it's been growing earnings less than most other companies lately. One possibility is that the P/E is high because investors think this lacklustre earnings performance will improve markedly. If not, then existing shareholders may be very nervous about the viability of the share price.

View our latest analysis for Viva Leisure

If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report on Viva Leisure.

What Are Growth Metrics Telling Us About The High P/E?

In order to justify its P/E ratio, Viva Leisure would need to produce outstanding growth well in excess of the market.

Taking a look back first, we see that there was hardly any earnings per share growth to speak of for the company over the past year. That's essentially a continuation of what we've seen over the last three years, as its EPS growth has been virtually non-existent for that entire period. So it seems apparent to us that the company has struggled to grow earnings meaningfully over that time.

Shifting to the future, estimates from the sole analyst covering the company suggest earnings should grow by 56% per year over the next three years. Meanwhile, the rest of the market is forecast to only expand by 15% each year, which is noticeably less attractive.

In light of this, it's understandable that Viva Leisure's P/E sits above the majority of other companies. Apparently shareholders aren't keen to offload something that is potentially eyeing a more prosperous future.

What We Can Learn From Viva Leisure's P/E?

Generally, our preference is to limit the use of the price-to-earnings ratio to establishing what the market thinks about the overall health of a company.

As we suspected, our examination of Viva Leisure'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. Unless these conditions change, they will continue to provide strong support to the share price.

There are also other vital risk factors to consider and we've discovered 2 warning signs for Viva Leisure (1 is significant!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

It's important to make sure you look for a great company, not just the first idea you come across. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and a low P/E).

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.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.