Should You Sell Trans-Siberian Gold plc (AIM:TSG) At This PE Ratio?
Trans-Siberian Gold plc (AIM:TSG) trades with a trailing P/E of 16.9x, which is higher than the industry average of 11.2x. Although some investors may jump to the conclusion that you should avoid the stock or sell if you own it, understanding the assumptions behind the P/E ratio might change your mind. Today, I will break down what the P/E ratio is, how to interpret it and what to watch out for. See our latest analysis for TSG
Demystifying the P/E ratio
A common ratio used for relative valuation is the P/E ratio. It compares a stock’s price per share to the stock’s earnings per share. A more intuitive way of understanding the P/E ratio is to think of it as how much investors are paying for each pound of the company’s earnings.
P/E Calculation for TSG
Price-Earnings Ratio = Price per share ÷ Earnings per share
TSG Price-Earnings Ratio = 0.38 ÷ 0.029 = 16.9x
The P/E ratio isn’t a metric you view in isolation and only becomes useful when you compare it against other similar companies. Our goal is to compare the stock’s P/E ratio to the average of companies that have similar attributes to TSG, such as company lifetime and products sold. One way of gathering a peer group is to use firms in the same industry, which is what I’ll do. At 16.9x, TSG’s P/E is higher than its industry peers (11.2x). This implies that investors are overvaluing each dollar of TSG’s earnings. As such, our analysis shows that TSG represents an over-priced stock.
A few caveats
However, before you rush out to sell your TSG shares, it is important to note that this conclusion is based on two key assumptions. The first is that our “similar companies” are actually similar to TSG, or else the difference in P/E might be a result of other factors. For example, if you compared lower risk firms with TSG, then investors would naturally value it at a lower price since it is a riskier investment. The second assumption that must hold true is that the stocks we are comparing TSG to are fairly valued by the market. If this is violated, TSG's P/E may be lower than its peers as they are actually overvalued by investors.
What this means for you:
Are you a shareholder? Since you may have already conducted your due diligence on TSG, the overvaluation of the stock may mean it is a good time to reduce your current holdings. But at the end of the day, keep in mind that relative valuation relies heavily on critical assumptions I've outlined above.
Are you a potential investor? If you are considering investing in TSG, looking at the PE ratio on its own is not enough to make a well-informed decision. You will benefit from looking at additional analysis and considering its intrinsic valuation along with other relative valuation metrics like PEG and EV/Sales.
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 Trans-Siberian Gold 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.
