Does Takung Art Co Ltd’s (TKAT) PE Ratio Warrant A Buy?
Takung Art Co Ltd (AMEX:TKAT) is currently trading at a trailing P/E of 6.2x, which is lower than the industry average of 40.4x. Although some investors may jump to the conclusion that this is a great buying opportunity, understanding the assumptions behind the P/E ratio might change your mind. Today, I will deconstruct the P/E ratio and highlight what you need to be careful of when using the P/E ratio. View our latest analysis for Takung Art
Demystifying the P/E ratio
The P/E ratio is one of many ratios used in relative valuation. By comparing a stock’s price per share to its earnings per share, we are able to see how much investors are paying for each dollar of the company’s earnings.
P/E Calculation for TKAT
Price-Earnings Ratio = Price per share ÷ Earnings per share
TKAT Price-Earnings Ratio = 3.05 ÷ 0.488 = 6.2x
The P/E ratio itself doesn’t tell you a lot; however, it becomes very insightful when you compare it with other similar companies. We want to compare the stock’s P/E ratio to the average of companies that have similar characteristics as TKAT, such as size and country of operation. A quick method of creating a peer group is to use companies in the same industry, which is what I will do. Since TKAT's P/E of 6.2x is lower than its industry peers (40.4x), it means that investors are paying less than they should for each dollar of TKAT's earnings. As such, our analysis shows that TKAT represents an under-priced stock.
Assumptions to be aware of
While our conclusion might prompt you to buy TKAT immediately, there are two important assumptions you should be aware of. Firstly, our peer group contains companies that are similar to TKAT. If this isn’t the case, the difference in P/E could be due to other factors. For example, if you compared higher growth firms with TKAT, then its P/E would naturally be lower since investors would reward its peers’ higher growth with a higher price. The second assumption that must hold true is that the stocks we are comparing TKAT to are fairly valued by the market. If this does not hold true, TKAT’s lower P/E ratio may be because firms in our peer group are overvalued by the market.
What this means for you:
Are you a shareholder? You may have already conducted fundamental analysis on the stock as a shareholder, so its current undervaluation could signal a good buying opportunity to increase your exposure to TKAT. Now that you understand the ins and outs of the PE metric, you should know to bear in mind its limitations before you make an investment decision.
Are you a potential investor? If TKAT has been on your watch list for a while, it is best you also consider its intrinsic valuation. Looking at PE on its own will not give you the full picture of the stock as an investment, so I suggest you should also look at other relative valuation metrics like EV/EBITDA or PEG.
PE is one aspect of your portfolio construction to consider when holding or entering into a stock. But it is certainly not the only factor. Take a look at our most recent infographic report on Takung Art for a more in-depth analysis of the stock to help you make a well-informed investment decision. Since we know a limitation of PE is it doesn't properly account for growth, you can use our free platform to see my list of stocks with a high growth potential and see if their PE is still reasonable.
To help readers see pass the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price sensitive company announcements.
The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned.
