Is It Too Late To Consider Buying Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS)?

Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS), might not be a large cap stock, but it saw a decent share price growth in the teens level on the NASDAQGS 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? Today I will analyse the most recent data on Advanced Energy Industries’s outlook and valuation to see if the opportunity still exists.

See our latest analysis for Advanced Energy Industries

Is Advanced Energy Industries Still Cheap?

The share price seems sensible at the moment 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 Advanced Energy Industries’s ratio of 17.7x is trading slightly above its industry peers’ ratio of 15.42x, which means if you buy Advanced Energy Industries today, you’d be paying a relatively sensible price for it. And if you believe that Advanced Energy Industries should be trading at this level in the long run, then there should only be a fairly immaterial downside vs other industry peers. Although, there may be an opportunity to buy in the future. This is because Advanced Energy Industries’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.

Can we expect growth from Advanced Energy Industries?

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. However, with a relatively muted profit growth of 2.5% expected over the next couple of years, growth doesn’t seem like a key driver for a buy decision for Advanced Energy Industries, at least in the short term.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? AEIS’s 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 AEIS? 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 tabs on AEIS, now may not be the most advantageous time to buy, given it is trading around industry price multiples. However, the positive growth outlook may mean it’s worth diving deeper into other factors in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

Since timing is quite important when it comes to individual stock picking, it's worth taking a look at what those latest analysts forecasts are. Luckily, you can check out what analysts are forecasting by clicking here.

If you are no longer interested in Advanced Energy Industries, 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.