When Should You Buy Summit Materials, Inc. (NYSE:SUM)?
Summit Materials, Inc. (NYSE:SUM), might not be a large cap stock, but it saw a double-digit share price rise of over 10% in the past couple of months on the NYSE. As a mid-cap stock with high coverage by analysts, you could assume any recent changes in the company’s outlook is already priced into the stock. But what if there is still an opportunity to buy? Let’s take a look at Summit Materials’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if the opportunity still exists.
See our latest analysis for Summit Materials
What's The Opportunity In Summit Materials?
The share price seems sensible at the moment according to my price multiple model, where I compare the company's price-to-earnings ratio to the industry average. In this instance, I’ve used the price-to-earnings (PE) ratio given that there is not enough information to reliably forecast the stock’s cash flows. I find that Summit Materials’s ratio of 13.19x is trading in-line with its industry peers’ ratio, which means if you buy Summit Materials today, you’d be paying a relatively sensible price for it. Is there another opportunity to buy low in the future? Since Summit Materials’s share price is quite volatile, we could potentially see it sink lower (or rise higher) in the future, giving us another chance to buy. This is based on its high beta, which is a good indicator for how much the stock moves relative to the rest of the market.
Can we expect growth from Summit Materials?
Future outlook is an important aspect when you’re looking at buying a stock, especially if you are an investor looking for growth in your portfolio. Buying a great company with a robust outlook at a cheap price is always a good investment, so let’s also take a look at the company's future expectations. However, with an extremely negative double-digit change in profit expected over the next couple of years, near-term growth is certainly not a driver of a buy decision. It seems like high uncertainty is on the cards for Summit Materials, at least in the near future.
What This Means For You
Are you a shareholder? Currently, SUM appears to be trading around industry price multiples, but given the uncertainty from negative returns in the future, this could be the right time to de-risk your portfolio. Is your current exposure to the stock beneficial for your total portfolio? And is the opportunity cost of holding a negative-outlook stock too high? Before you make a decision on SUM, take a look at whether its fundamentals have changed.
Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on SUM for a while, now may not be the most advantageous time to buy, given it is trading around industry price multiples. This means there’s less benefit from mispricing. In addition to this, the negative growth outlook increases the risk of holding the stock. However, there are also other important factors we haven’t considered today, which can help crystallize your views on SUM should the price fluctuate below the industry PE ratio.
If you want to dive deeper into Summit Materials, you'd also look into what risks it is currently facing. For example - Summit Materials has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of.
If you are no longer interested in Summit Materials, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.
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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.
