What Does Hays plc's (LON:HAS) Share Price Indicate?

While Hays plc (LON:HAS) might not be the most widely known stock at the moment, it saw a double-digit share price rise of over 10% in the past couple of months on the LSE. 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 Hays’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if the opportunity still exists.

View our latest analysis for Hays

Is Hays Still Cheap?

Great news for investors – Hays is still trading at a fairly cheap price 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 Hays’s ratio of 12.56x is below its peer average of 18.93x, which indicates the stock is trading at a lower price compared to the Professional Services industry. However, given that Hays’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 another chance to buy in the future. This is based on its high beta, which is a good indicator for share price volatility.

Can we expect growth from Hays?

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. With profit expected to grow by 36% over the next couple of years, the future seems bright for Hays. It looks like higher cash flow is on the cards for the stock, which should feed into a higher share valuation.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? Since HAS is currently below the industry PE ratio, it may be a great time to increase your holdings in the stock. With an optimistic outlook on the horizon, it seems like this growth has not yet been fully factored into the share price. However, there are also other factors such as capital structure to consider, which could explain the current price multiple.

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on HAS for a while, now might be the time to make a leap. Its buoyant future profit outlook isn’t fully reflected in the current share price yet, which means it’s not too late to buy HAS. But before you make any investment decisions, consider other factors such as the track record of its management team, in order to make a well-informed assessment.

So if you'd like to dive deeper into this stock, it's crucial to consider any risks it's facing. For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of Hays.

If you are no longer interested in Hays, 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.