At US$14.86, Is Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL) Worth Looking At Closely?

Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL), might not be a large cap stock, but it led the NASDAQGS gainers with a relatively large price hike in the past couple of weeks. The company is now trading at yearly-high levels following the recent surge in its share price. As a mid-cap stock with high coverage by analysts, you could assume any recent changes in the company’s outlook is already priced into the stock. However, could the stock still be trading at a relatively cheap price? Let’s take a look at Golden Ocean Group’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if the opportunity still exists.

View our latest analysis for Golden Ocean Group

What's The Opportunity In Golden Ocean Group?

Golden Ocean Group is currently expensive based on our price multiple model, where we look at the company's price-to-earnings ratio in comparison to the industry average. We’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 26.45x is currently well-above the industry average of 7.74x, meaning that it is trading at a more expensive price relative to its peers. But, is there another opportunity to buy low in the future? Since Golden Ocean Group’s share price is quite volatile, this could mean it can sink lower (or rise even further) in the future, giving us another chance to invest. This is based on its high beta, which is a good indicator for how much the stock moves relative to the rest of the market.

What does the future of Golden Ocean Group look like?

Investors looking for growth in their portfolio may want to consider the prospects of a company before buying its shares. 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 more than double over the next couple of years, the future seems bright for Golden Ocean Group. 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? It seems like the market has well and truly priced in GOGL’s positive outlook, with shares trading above industry price multiples. However, this brings up another question – is now the right time to sell? If you believe GOGL 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 GOGL 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 GOGL, which means it’s worth diving deeper into other factors in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

If you want to dive deeper into Golden Ocean Group, you'd also look into what risks it is currently facing. For instance, we've identified 4 warning signs for Golden Ocean Group (2 make us uncomfortable) you should be familiar with.

If you are no longer interested in Golden Ocean Group, 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.