Is Now The Time To Look At Buying Persistent Systems Limited (NSE:PERSISTENT)?

Persistent Systems Limited (NSE:PERSISTENT), might not be a large cap stock, but it received a lot of attention from a substantial price increase on the NSEI over the last few months. 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. But what if there is still an opportunity to buy? Let’s take a look at Persistent Systems’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if the opportunity still exists.

View our latest analysis for Persistent Systems

What's The Opportunity In Persistent Systems?

Persistent Systems is currently expensive based on my price multiple model, where I look at the company's price-to-earnings ratio in comparison to the industry average. 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 35.77x is currently well-above the industry average of 26.1x, meaning that it is trading at a more expensive price relative to its peers. In addition to this, it seems like Persistent Systems’s share price is quite stable, which could mean two things: firstly, it may take the share price a while to fall back down to an attractive buying range, and secondly, there may be less chances to buy low in the future once it reaches that value. This is because the stock is less volatile than the wider market given its low beta.

What kind of growth will Persistent Systems 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. With profit expected to grow by 63% over the next couple of years, the future seems bright for Persistent Systems. 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? PERSISTENT’s optimistic future growth appears to have been factored into the current share price, with shares trading above industry price multiples. However, this brings up another question – is now the right time to sell? If you believe PERSISTENT 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 tabs on PERSISTENT for some time, 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 optimistic prospect is encouraging for PERSISTENT, which means it’s worth diving deeper into other factors in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

Diving deeper into the forecasts for Persistent Systems mentioned earlier will help you understand how analysts view the stock going forward. Luckily, you can check out what analysts are forecasting by clicking here.

If you are no longer interested in Persistent Systems, 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.