Is It Too Late To Consider Buying Fraport AG (ETR:FRA)?

While Fraport AG (ETR:FRA) might not have the largest market cap around , it saw a significant share price rise of 24% in the past couple of months on the XTRA. The recent jump in the share price has meant that the company is trading at close to its 52-week high. With many analysts covering the mid-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 examine Fraport’s valuation and outlook in more detail to determine if there’s still a bargain opportunity.

View our latest analysis for Fraport

What's The Opportunity In Fraport?

The share price seems sensible at the moment according to our price multiple model, where we compare the company's price-to-earnings ratio to the industry average. We’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 11.9x is currently trading slightly below its industry peers’ ratio of 14.39x, which means if you buy Fraport today, you’d be paying a decent price for it. And if you believe that Fraport 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. So, is there another chance to buy low in the future? Given that Fraport’s share is fairly volatile (i.e. its price movements are magnified relative to the rest of the market) this could mean the price can sink lower, giving us an opportunity to buy later on. This is based on its high beta, which is a good indicator for share price volatility.

Can we expect growth from Fraport?

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. However, with a negative profit growth of -2.0% expected over the next couple of years, near-term growth certainly doesn’t appear to be a driver for a buy decision for Fraport. This certainty tips the risk-return scale towards higher risk.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? FRA 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 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 FRA, take a look at whether its fundamentals have changed.

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on FRA 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. Furthermore, 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 FRA should the price fluctuate below the industry PE ratio.

In light of this, if you'd like to do more analysis on the company, it's vital to be informed of the risks involved. For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of Fraport.

If you are no longer interested in Fraport, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.