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Is It Too Late To Consider Buying Robinson plc (LON:RBN)?

While Robinson plc (LON:RBN) might not be the most widely known stock at the moment, it received a lot of attention from a substantial price movement on the AIM over the last few months, increasing to UK£1.69 at one point, and dropping to the lows of UK£1.41. Some share price movements can give investors a better opportunity to enter into the stock, and potentially buy at a lower price. A question to answer is whether Robinson's current trading price of UK£1.53 reflective of the actual value of the small-cap? Or is it currently undervalued, providing us with the opportunity to buy? Let’s take a look at Robinson’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change.

Check out our latest analysis for Robinson

Is Robinson still cheap?

According to my price multiple model, which makes a comparison between the company's price-to-earnings ratio and the industry average, the stock price seems to be justfied. 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 13.77x is currently trading slightly below its industry peers’ ratio of 16.32x, which means if you buy Robinson today, you’d be paying a decent price for it. And if you believe Robinson should be trading in this range, then there isn’t much room for the share price to grow beyond the levels of other industry peers over the long-term. So, is there another chance to buy low in the future? Given that Robinson’s share is fairly volatile (i.e. its price movements are magnified relative to the rest of the market) this could mean the price can sink lower, giving us an opportunity to buy later on. This is based on its high beta, which is a good indicator for share price volatility.

What kind of growth will Robinson generate?

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. 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 Robinson, it is expected to deliver a highly negative earnings growth in the upcoming, 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? RBN seems priced close to industry peers right now, but given the uncertainty from negative returns in the future, this could be the right time to reduce the risk in 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 RBN, take a look at whether its fundamentals have changed.

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Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping tabs on RBN for a while, now may not be the most advantageous time to buy, given it is trading around industry price multiples. This 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 crystallize your views on RBN should the price fluctuate below the industry PE ratio.

In light of this, if you'd like to do more analysis on the company, it's vital to be informed of the risks involved. Our analysis shows 4 warning signs for Robinson (1 can't be ignored!) and we strongly recommend you look at them before investing.

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

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. 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.

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