Should You Think About Buying RATIONAL Aktiengesellschaft (ETR:RAA) Now?

Simply Wall St
·3 min read

RATIONAL Aktiengesellschaft (ETR:RAA), is not the largest company out there, but it saw a double-digit share price rise of over 10% in the past couple of months on the XTRA. 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 examine RATIONAL’s valuation and outlook in more detail to determine if there’s still a bargain opportunity.

See our latest analysis for RATIONAL

What Is RATIONAL Worth?

According to my price multiple model, where I compare the company's price-to-earnings ratio to the industry average, the stock currently looks expensive. 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 36.28x is currently well-above the industry average of 14.17x, meaning that it is trading at a more expensive price relative to its peers. If you like the stock, you may want to keep an eye out for a potential price decline in the future. Since RATIONAL’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.

Can we expect growth from RATIONAL?

earnings-and-revenue-growth
earnings-and-revenue-growth

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 23% over the next couple of years, the future seems bright for RATIONAL. 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 RAA’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 RAA 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 an eye on RAA for a while, 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 positive outlook is encouraging for RAA, 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 RATIONAL, you'd also look into what risks it is currently facing. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for RATIONAL you should be aware of.

If you are no longer interested in RATIONAL, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.

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