Is Now The Time To Look At Buying Super Retail Group Limited (ASX:SUL)?

Super Retail Group Limited (ASX:SUL), might not be a large cap stock, but it saw significant share price movement during recent months on the ASX, rising to highs of AU$13.62 and falling to the lows of AU$11.77. Some share price movements can give investors a better opportunity to enter into the stock, and potentially buy at a lower price. A question to answer is whether Super Retail Group's current trading price of AU$12.24 reflective of the actual value of the mid-cap? Or is it currently undervalued, providing us with the opportunity to buy? Let’s take a look at Super Retail Group’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change.

See our latest analysis for Super Retail Group

What is Super Retail Group worth?

According to my price multiple model, which makes a comparison between the company's price-to-earnings ratio and the industry average, the stock price seems to be justfied. I’ve used the price-to-earnings ratio in this instance because there’s not enough visibility to forecast its cash flows. The stock’s ratio of 9.18x is currently trading slightly below its industry peers’ ratio of 11.43x, which means if you buy Super Retail Group today, you’d be paying a reasonable price for it. And if you believe that Super Retail Group should be trading at this level in the long run, then there’s not much of an upside to gain over and above other industry peers. Although, there may be an opportunity to buy in the future. This is because Super Retail Group’s beta (a measure of share price volatility) is high, meaning its price movements will be exaggerated relative to the rest of the market. If the market is bearish, the company’s shares will likely fall by more than the rest of the market, providing a prime buying opportunity.

What does the future of Super Retail Group look like?

Investors looking for growth in their portfolio may want to consider the prospects of a company before buying its shares. Although value investors would argue that it’s the intrinsic value relative to the price that matter the most, a more compelling investment thesis would be high growth potential at a cheap price. Though in the case of Super Retail Group, it is expected to deliver a highly negative earnings growth in the next few years, which doesn’t help build up its investment thesis. It appears that risk of future uncertainty is high, at least in the near term.

What this means for you:

Are you a shareholder? SUL seems priced close to industry peers right now, but given the uncertainty from negative returns in the future, this could be the right time to reduce the risk in your portfolio. Is your current exposure to the stock optimal for your total portfolio? And is the opportunity cost of holding a negative-outlook stock too high? Before you make a decision on SUL, take a look at whether its fundamentals have changed.

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on SUL for a while, now may not be the most optimal 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 gel your views on SUL should the price fluctuate below the industry PE ratio.

With this in mind, we wouldn't consider investing in a stock unless we had a thorough understanding of the risks. For example, Super Retail Group has 2 warning signs (and 1 which is concerning) we think you should know about.

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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.
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