RH (NYSE:RH) shares have had a horrible month, losing 27% after a relatively good period beforehand. Looking back over the past twelve months the stock has been a solid performer regardless, with a gain of 13%.

Although its price has dipped substantially, when almost half of the companies in the United States' Specialty Retail industry have price-to-sales ratios (or "P/S") below 0.4x, you may still consider RH as a stock probably not worth researching with its 1.8x P/S ratio. Nonetheless, we'd need to dig a little deeper to determine if there is a rational basis for the elevated P/S.

How RH Has Been Performing

With revenue growth that's inferior to most other companies of late, RH has been relatively sluggish. One possibility is that the P/S ratio is high because investors think this lacklustre revenue performance will improve markedly. However, if this isn't the case, investors might get caught out paying too much for the stock.

If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report on RH.

What Are Revenue Growth Metrics Telling Us About The High P/S?

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

If we review the last year of revenue, the company posted a result that saw barely any deviation from a year ago. This isn't what shareholders were looking for as it means they've been left with a 15% decline in revenue over the last three years in total. Accordingly, shareholders would have felt downbeat about the medium-term rates of revenue growth.

Turning to the outlook, the next three years should generate growth of 13% per annum as estimated by the analysts watching the company. Meanwhile, the rest of the industry is forecast to only expand by 5.8% per year, which is noticeably less attractive.

In light of this, it's understandable that RH'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.

The Final Word

RH's P/S remain high even after its stock plunged. While the price-to-sales ratio shouldn't be the defining factor in whether you buy a stock or not, it's quite a capable barometer of revenue expectations.

Our look into RH shows that its P/S ratio remains high on the merit of its strong future revenues. Right now shareholders are comfortable with the P/S as they are quite confident future revenues aren't under threat. It's hard to see the share price falling strongly in the near future under these circumstances.

If you're unsure about the strength of RH's business, why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals for some other companies you may have missed.

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.