There wouldn't be many who think ISP Global Limited's (HKG:8487) price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of 0.4x is worth a mention when the median P/S for the Communications industry in Hong Kong is similar at about 0.5x. 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.

Check out our latest analysis for ISP Global

How ISP Global Has Been Performing

ISP Global has been doing a decent job lately as it's been growing revenue at a reasonable pace. Perhaps the expectation moving forward is that the revenue growth will track in line with the wider industry for the near term, which has kept the P/S subdued. If not, then at least existing shareholders probably aren't too pessimistic about the future direction of the share price.

We don't have analyst forecasts, but you can see how recent trends are setting up the company for the future by checking out our free report on ISP Global's earnings, revenue and cash flow.

Do Revenue Forecasts Match The P/S Ratio?

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

Retrospectively, the last year delivered a decent 4.2% gain to the company's revenues. The latest three year period has seen an incredible overall rise in revenue, even though the last 12 month performance was only fair. Therefore, it's fair to say the revenue growth recently has been superb for the company.

When compared to the industry's one-year growth forecast of 32%, the most recent medium-term revenue trajectory is noticeably more alluring

With this information, we find it interesting that ISP Global is trading at a fairly similar P/S compared to the industry. It may be that most investors are not convinced the company can maintain its recent growth rates.

The Final Word

It's argued the price-to-sales ratio is an inferior measure of value within certain industries, but it can be a powerful business sentiment indicator.

We didn't quite envision ISP Global's P/S sitting in line with the wider industry, considering the revenue growth over the last three-year is higher than the current industry outlook. It'd be fair to assume that potential risks the company faces could be the contributing factor to the lower than expected P/S. At least the risk of a price drop looks to be subdued if recent medium-term revenue trends continue, but investors seem to think future revenue could see some volatility.

You need to take note of risks, for example - ISP Global has 2 warning signs (and 1 which is a bit concerning) we think you should know about.

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

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