Why Barratt Developments plc (LON:BDEV) Could Be Worth Watching

While Barratt Developments plc (LON:BDEV) might not be the most widely known stock at the moment, it saw significant share price movement during recent months on the LSE, rising to highs of UK£6.33 and falling to the lows of UK£4.70. 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 Barratt Developments' current trading price of UK£4.70 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 Barratt Developments’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change.

View our latest analysis for Barratt Developments

Is Barratt Developments still cheap?

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 7.25x is currently trading slightly below its industry peers’ ratio of 9.97x, which means if you buy Barratt Developments today, you’d be paying a reasonable price for it. And if you believe Barratt Developments should be trading in this range, then there isn’t much room for the share price to grow beyond the levels of other industry peers over the long-term. Although, there may be an opportunity to buy in the future. This is because Barratt Developments’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 Barratt Developments look like?

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 22% over the next couple of years, the future seems bright for Barratt Developments. 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? BDEV’s optimistic future growth appears to have been factored into the current share price, with shares trading around industry price multiples. However, there are also other important factors which we haven’t considered today, such as the financial strength of the company. Have these factors changed since the last time you looked at BDEV? Will you have enough conviction to buy should the price fluctuate below the industry PE ratio?

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on BDEV, now may not be the most optimal time to buy, given it is trading around industry price multiples. However, the positive outlook is encouraging for BDEV, which means it’s worth further examining other factors such as the strength of its balance sheet, 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 Barratt Developments at this point in time. While conducting our analysis, we found that Barratt Developments has 2 warning signs and it would be unwise to ignore these.

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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.