Yahoo Finance Vontier Corporation's (NYSE:VNT) Share Price Is Matching Sentiment Around Its Earnings
When close to half the companies in the United States have price-to-earnings ratios (or "P/E's") above 19x, you may consider Vontier Corporation (NYSE:VNT) as an attractive investment with its 13x P/E ratio. However, the P/E might be low for a reason and it requires further investigation to determine if it's justified.
Vontier could be doing better as it's been growing earnings less than most other companies lately. The P/E is probably low because investors think this lacklustre earnings performance isn't going to get any better. If you still like the company, you'd be hoping earnings don't get any worse and that you could pick up some stock while it's out of favour.
View our latest analysis for Vontier
If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report on Vontier.
Is There Any Growth For Vontier?
Vontier's P/E ratio would be typical for a company that's only expected to deliver limited growth, and importantly, perform worse than the market.
Retrospectively, the last year delivered an exceptional 31% gain to the company's bottom line. As a result, it also grew EPS by 13% in total over the last three years. Therefore, it's fair to say the earnings growth recently has been respectable for the company.
Turning to the outlook, the next year should generate growth of 4.1% as estimated by the nine analysts watching the company. With the market predicted to deliver 11% growth , the company is positioned for a weaker earnings result.
In light of this, it's understandable that Vontier's P/E sits below the majority of other companies. Apparently many shareholders weren't comfortable holding on while the company is potentially eyeing a less prosperous future.
The Final Word
It's argued the price-to-earnings ratio is an inferior measure of value within certain industries, but it can be a powerful business sentiment indicator.
As we suspected, our examination of Vontier's analyst forecasts revealed that its inferior earnings outlook is contributing to its low P/E. At this stage investors feel the potential for an improvement in earnings isn't great enough to justify a higher P/E ratio. It's hard to see the share price rising strongly in the near future under these circumstances.
You always need to take note of risks, for example - Vontier has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.
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 a strong growth track record, trading on a P/E below 20x.
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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