Advertisement
UK markets closed
  • FTSE 100

    7,952.62
    +20.64 (+0.26%)
     
  • FTSE 250

    19,884.73
    +74.07 (+0.37%)
     
  • AIM

    743.26
    +1.15 (+0.15%)
     
  • GBP/EUR

    1.1701
    +0.0007 (+0.06%)
     
  • GBP/USD

    1.2619
    -0.0003 (-0.02%)
     
  • Bitcoin GBP

    55,375.57
    -450.55 (-0.81%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    885.54
    0.00 (0.00%)
     
  • S&P 500

    5,254.35
    +5.86 (+0.11%)
     
  • DOW

    39,807.37
    +47.29 (+0.12%)
     
  • CRUDE OIL

    83.11
    -0.06 (-0.07%)
     
  • GOLD FUTURES

    2,254.80
    +16.40 (+0.73%)
     
  • NIKKEI 225

    40,369.44
    +201.37 (+0.50%)
     
  • HANG SENG

    16,541.42
    +148.58 (+0.91%)
     
  • DAX

    18,492.49
    +15.40 (+0.08%)
     
  • CAC 40

    8,205.81
    +1.00 (+0.01%)
     

Why value and momentum could propel the Sohu.com share price higher

Buying cheap shares that are 'on the move' is a value investing strategy with a momentum twist - and there are signs that Sohu.com (NSQ:SOHU) could be a stock that suits this approach.

Over the past 30 years, finance academics and industry professionals have reached broad agreement about the factors that really drive stock market profits...

Buying stocks that are undervalued is one of them. Buying stocks that trending higher is another. Look for both factors simultaneously and you've got the makings of a powerful "value & momentum" investment strategy.

So what financial measures can point to a strong blend of value and momentum, and how does Sohu.com stack up against them?

ADVERTISEMENT

GET MORE DATA-DRIVEN INSIGHTS INTO NSQ:SOHU »

Take value…

Many analysts agree that cheap stocks have a tendency to outperform expensive stocks on average over time. So, finding stocks that are cheap against some classic valuation measures makes sense. Looking for a high Earnings Yield and low Price to Sales Ratio can be a good place to start - and here's why...

The Earnings Yield takes a company’s profits and compares it to its current market valuation (enterprise value). Using the enterprise value takes into account cash and debt and the calculation gives us a good idea of the total value of the stock. Expressed as a percentage, a high Earnings Yield is a good sign of value. A good rule of thumb can be to look for an Earnings Yield above 5%. Sohu.com beats this with an Earnings Yield of 9.33%.

The Price to Sales ratio tells us how cheap/expensive a company is relative to its current sales. The calculation is quite straightforward, taking the current share price and dividing this by its sales per share. A Price to Sales ratio of less than 1 is said to offer good value. Sohu.com is well below this level, with a Price to Sales ratio of 0.49.

But BEWARE! Value on its own is risky. If there are no other positive factors at play, there's a chance you're looking at a value trap...

… and mix in momentum

Momentum makes this value strategy work harder. Signs of positive price momentum can be a clue that an attractively valued stock is starting to re-rate. Indeed, momentum has be shown to be a very predictable driver of stock market profits.

To assess price momentum we can use Relative Strength, which compares the share price change to the underlying market index over a specified period of time.

Outperformance and strong momentum is an indicator that a share might continue its upward trend. Sohu.com’s Relative Strength over the past 6 months stands at 120%.

Next Steps

Finding cheap stocks where momentum is positively turning around is no easy task, but Sohu.com seems to have good qualifying attributes. It is always important to carry out further due diligence on a stock before making any final buying decisions though. The Sohu.com StockReport is a good place to start. A StockReport contains a wealth of information about a company’s value, quality and momentum characteristics and its historical financial data.

If you’d like to find more potential Value & Momentum stocks like Sohu.com, then check out Stockopedia’s screening tool. Our team of financial analysts have carefully crafted this Value & Momentum screen set up, but you can also scour for stocks in the market using your very own customised screening parameters. You can find out more about how Stockopedia’s screener works here.