Revenues Tell The Story For Datadog, Inc. (NASDAQ:DDOG)

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Datadog, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:DDOG) price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of 13.4x might make it look like a strong sell right now compared to the Software industry in the United States, where around half of the companies have P/S ratios below 4.3x and even P/S below 1.9x are quite common. However, the P/S might be quite high for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.

Check out our latest analysis for Datadog

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ps-multiple-vs-industry

What Does Datadog's P/S Mean For Shareholders?

With revenue growth that's superior to most other companies of late, Datadog has been doing relatively well. It seems that many are expecting the strong revenue performance to persist, which has raised the P/S. However, if this isn't the case, investors might get caught out paying to much for the stock.

Want the full picture on analyst estimates for the company? Then our free report on Datadog will help you uncover what's on the horizon.

Is There Enough Revenue Growth Forecasted For Datadog?

Datadog's P/S ratio would be typical for a company that's expected to deliver very strong growth, and importantly, perform much better than the industry.

Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 63% gain to the company's top line. The latest three year period has also seen an incredible overall rise in revenue, aided by its incredible short-term performance. So we can start by confirming that the company has done a tremendous job of growing revenue over that time.

Turning to the outlook, the next three years should generate growth of 29% each year as estimated by the analysts watching the company. Meanwhile, the rest of the industry is forecast to only expand by 13% each year, which is noticeably less attractive.

In light of this, it's understandable that Datadog's P/S sits above the majority of other companies. It seems most investors are expecting this strong future growth and are willing to pay more for the stock.

What Does Datadog's P/S Mean For Investors?

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.

We've established that Datadog maintains its high P/S on the strength of its forecasted revenue growth being higher than the the rest of the Software industry, as expected. It appears that shareholders are confident in the company's future revenues, which is propping up the P/S. It's hard to see the share price falling strongly in the near future under these circumstances.

It's always necessary to consider the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 1 warning sign with Datadog, and understanding should be part of your investment process.

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.

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