Yahoo Finance Here's What Meredith Corporation's (NYSE:MDP) P/E Is Telling Us
This article is for investors who would like to improve their understanding of price to earnings ratios (P/E ratios). We'll look at Meredith Corporation's (NYSE:MDP) P/E ratio and reflect on what it tells us about the company's share price. Meredith has a P/E ratio of 34.01, based on the last twelve months. That corresponds to an earnings yield of approximately 2.9%.
See our latest analysis for Meredith
How Do You Calculate A P/E Ratio?
The formula for P/E is:
Price to Earnings Ratio = Share Price ÷ Earnings per Share (EPS)
Or for Meredith:
P/E of 34.01 = $34.67 ÷ $1.02 (Based on the year to September 2019.)
Is A High P/E Ratio Good?
A higher P/E ratio means that investors are paying a higher price for each $1 of company earnings. That isn't a good or a bad thing on its own, but a high P/E means that buyers have a higher opinion of the business's prospects, relative to stocks with a lower P/E.
How Does Meredith's P/E Ratio Compare To Its Peers?
The P/E ratio indicates whether the market has higher or lower expectations of a company. The image below shows that Meredith has a higher P/E than the average (14.8) P/E for companies in the media industry.
Its relatively high P/E ratio indicates that Meredith shareholders think it will perform better than other companies in its industry classification. The market is optimistic about the future, but that doesn't guarantee future growth. So investors should delve deeper. I like to check if company insiders have been buying or selling.
How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios
Companies that shrink earnings per share quickly will rapidly decrease the 'E' in the equation. Therefore, even if you pay a low multiple of earnings now, that multiple will become higher in the future. Then, a higher P/E might scare off shareholders, pushing the share price down.
Meredith saw earnings per share improve by -3.7% last year. But earnings per share are down 17% per year over the last five years.
Remember: P/E Ratios Don't Consider The Balance Sheet
Don't forget that the P/E ratio considers market capitalization. In other words, it does not consider any debt or cash that the company may have on the balance sheet. The exact same company would hypothetically deserve a higher P/E ratio if it had a strong balance sheet, than if it had a weak one with lots of debt, because a cashed up company can spend on growth.
Such spending might be good or bad, overall, but the key point here is that you need to look at debt to understand the P/E ratio in context.
So What Does Meredith's Balance Sheet Tell Us?
Meredith's net debt is considerable, at 149% of its market cap. If you want to compare its P/E ratio to other companies, you must keep in mind that these debt levels would usually warrant a relatively low P/E.
The Verdict On Meredith's P/E Ratio
Meredith has a P/E of 34.0. That's higher than the average in its market, which is 18.2. With relatively high debt, and reasonably modest earnings per share growth over twelve months, it's safe to say the market believes the company will improve its growth in the future.
Investors have an opportunity when market expectations about a stock are wrong. If the reality for a company is better than it expects, you can make money by buying and holding for the long term. So this free visualization of the analyst consensus on future earnings could help you make the right decision about whether to buy, sell, or hold.
Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking at a few good candidates. So take a peek at this free list of companies with modest (or no) debt, trading on a P/E below 20.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
