Denox Environmental & Technology Holdings Limited (HKG:1452) shareholders would be excited to see that the share price has had a great month, posting a 31% gain and recovering from prior weakness. Unfortunately, the gains of the last month did little to right the losses of the last year with the stock still down 28% over that time.

Although its price has surged higher, you could still be forgiven for feeling indifferent about Denox Environmental & Technology Holdings' P/S ratio of 0.3x, since the median price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio for the Machinery industry in Hong Kong is also close to 0.7x. 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.

View our latest analysis for Denox Environmental & Technology Holdings

What Does Denox Environmental & Technology Holdings' Recent Performance Look Like?

Denox Environmental & Technology Holdings certainly has been doing a great job lately as it's been growing its revenue at a really rapid pace. The P/S is probably moderate because investors think this strong revenue growth might not be enough to outperform the broader industry in the near future. If that doesn't eventuate, then existing shareholders have reason to be feeling optimistic 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 Denox Environmental & Technology Holdings' earnings, revenue and cash flow.

Is There Some Revenue Growth Forecasted For Denox Environmental & Technology Holdings?

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

If we review the last year of revenue growth, the company posted a terrific increase of 57%. The latest three year period has also seen an excellent 72% overall rise in revenue, aided by its short-term performance. So we can start by confirming that the company has done a great job of growing revenue over that time.

This is in contrast to the rest of the industry, which is expected to grow by 16% over the next year, materially lower than the company's recent medium-term annualised growth rates.

With this information, we find it interesting that Denox Environmental & Technology Holdings is trading at a fairly similar P/S compared to the industry. Apparently some shareholders believe the recent performance is at its limits and have been accepting lower selling prices.

The Key Takeaway

Denox Environmental & Technology Holdings' stock has a lot of momentum behind it lately, which has brought its P/S level with the rest of the industry. Using the price-to-sales ratio alone to determine if you should sell your stock isn't sensible, however it can be a practical guide to the company's future prospects.

To our surprise, Denox Environmental & Technology Holdings revealed its three-year revenue trends aren't contributing to its P/S as much as we would have predicted, given they look better than current industry expectations. There could be some unobserved threats to revenue preventing the P/S ratio from matching this positive performance. It appears some are indeed anticipating revenue instability, because the persistence of these recent medium-term conditions would normally provide a boost to the share price.

And what about other risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Denox Environmental & Technology Holdings (of which 1 makes us a bit uncomfortable!) 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).

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.