At €2.34, Is It Time To Put Intesa Sanpaolo S.p.A. (BIT:ISP) On Your Watch List?

Today we're going to take a look at the well-established Intesa Sanpaolo S.p.A. (BIT:ISP). The company's stock received a lot of attention from a substantial price increase on the BIT over the last few months. With many analysts covering the large-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 take a look at Intesa Sanpaolo’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if the opportunity still exists.

View our latest analysis for Intesa Sanpaolo

Is Intesa Sanpaolo still cheap?

According to my relative valuation model, the stock seems to be currently fairly priced. 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 9.7x is currently trading slightly above its industry peers’ ratio of 9.48x, which means if you buy Intesa Sanpaolo today, you’d be paying a relatively reasonable price for it. And if you believe Intesa Sanpaolo should be trading in this range, then there isn’t really any room for the share price grow beyond what it’s currently trading. Although, there may be an opportunity to buy in the future. This is because Intesa Sanpaolo’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 Intesa Sanpaolo look like?

Investors looking for growth in their portfolio may want to consider the prospects of a company before buying its shares. 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. Though in the case of Intesa Sanpaolo, it is expected to deliver a negative earnings growth of -5.5%, which doesn’t help build up its investment thesis. It appears that risk of future uncertainty is high, at least in the near term.

What this means for you:

Are you a shareholder? Currently, ISP appears to be trading around its fair value, 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 optimal for your total portfolio? And is the opportunity cost of holding a negative-outlook stock too high? Before you make a decision on ISP, take a look at whether its fundamentals have changed.

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping tabs on ISP for a while, now may not be the most advantageous time to buy, given it is trading around its fair value. The price seems to be trading at fair value, which 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 gel your views on ISP should the price fluctuate below its true value.

Price is just the tip of the iceberg. Dig deeper into what truly matters – the fundamentals – before you make a decision on Intesa Sanpaolo. You can find everything you need to know about Intesa Sanpaolo in the latest infographic research report. If you are no longer interested in Intesa Sanpaolo, you can use our free platform to see my list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.