With a median price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of close to 0.8x in the Food industry in the United States, you could be forgiven for feeling indifferent about Utz Brands, Inc.'s (NYSE:UTZ) P/S ratio, which comes in at about the same. 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 Utz Brands

How Has Utz Brands Performed Recently?

Utz Brands could be doing better as its revenue has been going backwards lately while most other companies have been seeing positive revenue growth. One possibility is that the P/S ratio is moderate because investors think this poor revenue performance will turn around. If not, then existing shareholders may be a little nervous about the viability of the share price.

Keen to find out how analysts think Utz Brands' future stacks up against the industry? In that case, our free report is a great place to start.

Do Revenue Forecasts Match The P/S Ratio?

Utz Brands' P/S ratio would be typical for a company that's only expected to deliver moderate growth, and importantly, perform in line with the industry.

In reviewing the last year of financials, we were disheartened to see the company's revenues fell to the tune of 1.4%. Regardless, revenue has managed to lift by a handy 26% in aggregate from three years ago, thanks to the earlier period of growth. Accordingly, while they would have preferred to keep the run going, shareholders would be roughly satisfied with the medium-term rates of revenue growth.

Looking ahead now, revenue is anticipated to climb by 2.3% during the coming year according to the ten analysts following the company. With the industry predicted to deliver 2.2% growth , the company is positioned for a comparable revenue result.

With this information, we can see why Utz Brands is trading at a fairly similar P/S to the industry. It seems most investors are expecting to see average future growth and are only willing to pay a moderate amount for the stock.

The Final Word

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

A Utz Brands' P/S seems about right to us given the knowledge that analysts are forecasting a revenue outlook that is similar to the Food industry. At this stage investors feel the potential for an improvement or deterioration in revenue isn't great enough to push P/S in a higher or lower direction. All things considered, if the P/S and revenue estimates contain no major shocks, then it's hard to see the share price moving strongly in either direction in the near future.

We don't want to rain on the parade too much, but we did also find 2 warning signs for Utz Brands (1 is potentially serious!) that you need to be mindful of.

Of course, profitable companies with a history of great earnings growth are generally safer bets. So you may wish to see this free collection of other companies that have reasonable P/E ratios and have grown earnings strongly.

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.