Is There An Opportunity With Silver Lake Resources Limited's (ASX:SLR) 41% Undervaluation?

Key Insights

• Using the 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity, Silver Lake Resources fair value estimate is AU$2.03
• Silver Lake Resources' AU$1.19 share price signals that it might be 41% undervalued
• Analyst price target for SLR is AU$1.50 which is 26% below our fair value estimate

How far off is Silver Lake Resources Limited (ASX:SLR) from its intrinsic value? Using the most recent financial data, we'll take a look at whether the stock is fairly priced by projecting its future cash flows and then discounting them to today's value. This will be done using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward.

Remember though, that there are many ways to estimate a company's value, and a DCF is just one method. If you want to learn more about discounted cash flow, the rationale behind this calculation can be read in detail in the Simply Wall St analysis model.

View our latest analysis for Silver Lake Resources

The Method

We are going to use a two-stage DCF model, which, as the name states, takes into account two stages of growth. The first stage is generally a higher growth period which levels off heading towards the terminal value, captured in the second 'steady growth' period. To start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

Generally we assume that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar in the future, and so the sum of these future cash flows is then discounted to today's value:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) estimate

	2024	2025	2026	2027	2028	2029	2030	2031	2032	2033
Levered FCF (A$, Millions)	AU$63.6m	AU$155.5m	AU$197.6m	AU$169.0m	AU$153.0m	AU$143.9m	AU$138.8m	AU$136.2m	AU$135.2m	AU$135.4m
Growth Rate Estimate Source	Analyst x4	Analyst x4	Analyst x4	Analyst x1	Est @ -9.44%	Est @ -5.98%	Est @ -3.56%	Est @ -1.87%	Est @ -0.69%	Est @ 0.14%
Present Value (A$, Millions) Discounted @ 8.5%	AU$58.6	AU$132	AU$155	AU$122	AU$102	AU$88.4	AU$78.6	AU$71.1	AU$65.1	AU$60.2

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)
Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = AU$933m

After calculating the present value of future cash flows in the initial 10-year period, we need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all future cash flows beyond the first stage. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a country's GDP growth. In this case we have used the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield (2.1%) to estimate future growth. In the same way as with the 10-year 'growth' period, we discount future cash flows to today's value, using a cost of equity of 8.5%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF₂₀₃₃ × (1 + g) ÷ (r – g) = AU$135m× (1 + 2.1%) ÷ (8.5%– 2.1%) = AU$2.2b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)¹⁰= AU$2.2b÷ ( 1 + 8.5%)¹⁰= AU$963m

The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is AU$1.9b. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of AU$1.2, the company appears quite good value at a 41% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Remember though, that this is just an approximate valuation, and like any complex formula - garbage in, garbage out.

The Assumptions

We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Silver Lake Resources as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 8.5%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.275. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.

SWOT Analysis for Silver Lake Resources

Looking Ahead:

Whilst important, the DCF calculation is only one of many factors that you need to assess for a company. It's not possible to obtain a foolproof valuation with a DCF model. Preferably you'd apply different cases and assumptions and see how they would impact the company's valuation. For example, changes in the company's cost of equity or the risk free rate can significantly impact the valuation. What is the reason for the share price sitting below the intrinsic value? For Silver Lake Resources, we've compiled three relevant elements you should further examine:

1. Risks: Take risks, for example - Silver Lake Resources has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.
2. Future Earnings: How does SLR's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart.
3. Other High Quality Alternatives: Do you like a good all-rounder? Explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing!

PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the ASX every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks just search here.

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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.