Is It Time To Consider Buying Continental Aktiengesellschaft (ETR:CON)?

Today we're going to take a look at the well-established Continental Aktiengesellschaft (ETR:CON). The company's stock saw a decent share price growth of 16% on the XTRA over the last few months. The recent rally in share prices has nudged the company in the right direction, though it still falls short of its yearly peak. With many analysts covering the large-cap stock, we may expect any price-sensitive announcements have already been factored into the stock’s share price. However, what if the stock is still a bargain? Let’s take a look at Continental’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if the opportunity still exists.

See our latest analysis for Continental

What Is Continental Worth?

Continental appears to be expensive according to our price multiple model, which makes a comparison between the company's price-to-earnings ratio and the industry average. In this instance, we’ve used the price-to-earnings (PE) ratio given that there is not enough information to reliably forecast the stock’s cash flows. We find that Continental’s ratio of 14.93x is above its peer average of 9.06x, which suggests the stock is trading at a higher price compared to the Auto Components industry. If you like the stock, you may want to keep an eye out for a potential price decline in the future. Since Continental’s share price is quite volatile, this could mean it can sink lower (or rise even further) in the future, giving us another chance to invest. 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 Continental?

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. 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. Continental's earnings over the next few years are expected to double, indicating a very optimistic future ahead. This should lead to stronger cash flows, feeding into a higher share value.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? It seems like the market has well and truly priced in CON’s positive outlook, with shares trading above industry price multiples. However, this brings up another question – is now the right time to sell? If you believe CON should trade below its current price, selling high and buying it back up again when its price falls towards the industry PE ratio can be profitable. But before you make this decision, take a look at whether its fundamentals have changed.

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on CON for a while, now may not be the best time to enter into the stock. The price has surpassed its industry peers, which means it is likely that there is no more upside from mispricing. However, the positive outlook is encouraging for CON, which means it’s worth diving deeper into other factors in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

So while earnings quality is important, it's equally important to consider the risks facing Continental at this point in time. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for Continental you should be aware of.

If you are no longer interested in Continental, 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.