Is It Time To Consider Buying National Express Group PLC (LON:NEX)?

National Express Group PLC (LON:NEX), might not be a large cap stock, but it saw significant share price movement during recent months on the LSE, rising to highs of UK£3.28 and falling to the lows of UK£2.84. 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 National Express Group's current trading price of UK£3.03 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 National Express Group’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change.

Check out our latest analysis for National Express Group

What is National Express Group worth?

According to my valuation model, National Express Group seems to be fairly priced at around 20% below my intrinsic value, which means if you buy National Express Group today, you’d be paying a fair price for it. And if you believe the company’s true value is £3.76, then there isn’t much room for the share price grow beyond what it’s currently trading. So, is there another chance to buy low in the future? Given that National Express Group’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.

What kind of growth will National Express Group generate?

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. In National Express Group's case, its revenues over the next few years are expected to grow by 54%, indicating a highly optimistic future ahead. If expense does not increase by the same rate, or higher, this top line growth should lead to stronger cash flows, feeding into a higher share value.

What this means for you:

Are you a shareholder? NEX’s optimistic future growth appears to have been factored into the current share price, with shares trading around its fair value. 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 the stock? Will you have enough conviction to buy should the price fluctuates below the true value?

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on NEX, now may not be the most optimal time to buy, given it is trading around its fair value. However, the positive outlook is encouraging for the company, which means it’s worth diving deeper into other factors such as the strength of its balance sheet, in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

So if you'd like to dive deeper into this stock, it's crucial to consider any risks it's facing. While conducting our analysis, we found that National Express Group has 1 warning sign and it would be unwise to ignore it.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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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