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When close to half the companies in the United States have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") below 17x, you may consider Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE:DQ) as a stock to avoid entirely with its 27.3x P/E ratio. Although, it's not wise to just take the P/E at face value as there may be an explanation why it's so lofty.
Recent times have been pleasing for Daqo New Energy as its earnings have risen in spite of the market's earnings going into reverse. It seems that many are expecting the company to continue defying the broader market adversity, which has increased investors’ willingness to pay up for the stock. You'd really hope so, otherwise you're paying a pretty hefty price for no particular reason.
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How Is Daqo New Energy's Growth Trending?
The only time you'd be truly comfortable seeing a P/E as steep as Daqo New Energy's is when the company's growth is on track to outshine the market decidedly.
Taking a look back first, we see that the company grew earnings per share by an impressive 43% last year. However, this wasn't enough as the latest three year period has seen a very unpleasant 27% drop in EPS in aggregate. Therefore, it's fair to say the earnings growth recently has been undesirable for the company.
Looking ahead now, EPS is anticipated to climb by 50% per year during the coming three years according to the eight analysts following the company. That's shaping up to be materially higher than the 12% each year growth forecast for the broader market.
In light of this, it's understandable that Daqo New Energy's P/E sits above the majority of other companies. Apparently shareholders aren't keen to offload something that is potentially eyeing a more prosperous future.
The Bottom Line On Daqo New Energy's P/E
Using the price-to-earnings 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.
We've established that Daqo New Energy maintains its high P/E on the strength of its forecast growth being higher than the wider market, as expected. Right now shareholders are comfortable with the P/E as they are quite confident future earnings aren't under threat. Unless these conditions change, they will continue to provide strong support to the share price.