Yahoo Finance A Sliding Share Price Has Us Looking At Amalgamated Bank's (NASDAQ:AMAL) P/E Ratio
Unfortunately for some shareholders, the Amalgamated Bank (NASDAQ:AMAL) share price has dived 48% in the last thirty days. That drop has capped off a tough year for shareholders, with the share price down 42% in that time.
Assuming nothing else has changed, a lower share price makes a stock more attractive to potential buyers. In the long term, share prices tend to follow earnings per share, but in the short term prices bounce around in response to short term factors (which are not always obvious). So, on certain occasions, long term focussed investors try to take advantage of pessimistic expectations to buy shares at a better price. One way to gauge market expectations of a stock is to look at its Price to Earnings Ratio (PE Ratio). A high P/E ratio means that investors have a high expectation about future growth, while a low P/E ratio means they have low expectations about future growth.
Check out our latest analysis for Amalgamated Bank
How Does Amalgamated Bank's P/E Ratio Compare To Its Peers?
Amalgamated Bank's P/E of 6.05 indicates relatively low sentiment towards the stock. If you look at the image below, you can see Amalgamated Bank has a lower P/E than the average (8.6) in the banks industry classification.
Its relatively low P/E ratio indicates that Amalgamated Bank shareholders think it will struggle to do as well as other companies in its industry classification. While current expectations are low, the stock could be undervalued if the situation is better than the market assumes. If you consider the stock interesting, further research is recommended. For example, I often monitor director buying and selling.
How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios
Generally speaking the rate of earnings growth has a profound impact on a company's P/E multiple. When earnings grow, the 'E' increases, over time. That means unless the share price increases, the P/E will reduce in a few years. A lower P/E should indicate the stock is cheap relative to others -- and that may attract buyers.
Amalgamated Bank had pretty flat EPS growth in the last year. But over the longer term (5 years) earnings per share have increased by 31%.
A Limitation: P/E Ratios Ignore Debt and Cash In The Bank
It's important to note that the P/E ratio considers the market capitalization, not the enterprise value. That means it doesn't take debt or cash into account. The exact same company would hypothetically deserve a higher P/E ratio if it had a strong balance sheet, than if it had a weak one with lots of debt, because a cashed up company can spend on growth.
Spending on growth might be good or bad a few years later, but the point is that the P/E ratio does not account for the option (or lack thereof).
How Does Amalgamated Bank's Debt Impact Its P/E Ratio?
With net cash of US$38m, Amalgamated Bank has a very strong balance sheet, which may be important for its business. Having said that, at 13% of its market capitalization the cash hoard would contribute towards a higher P/E ratio.
The Bottom Line On Amalgamated Bank's P/E Ratio
Amalgamated Bank has a P/E of 6.1. That's below the average in the US market, which is 12.6. Earnings improved over the last year. And the healthy balance sheet means the company can sustain growth while the P/E suggests shareholders don't think it will. Given Amalgamated Bank's P/E ratio has declined from 11.7 to 6.1 in the last month, we know for sure that the market is more worried about the business today, than it was back then. For those who prefer to invest with the flow of momentum, that might be a bad sign, but for deep value investors this stock might justify some research.
When the market is wrong about a stock, it gives savvy investors an opportunity. If it is underestimating a company, investors can make money by buying and holding the shares until the market corrects itself. So this free visual report on analyst forecasts could hold the key to an excellent investment decision.
Of course you might be able to find a better stock than Amalgamated Bank. So you may wish to see this free collection of other companies that have grown earnings strongly.
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.
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. Thank you for reading.
