The most critical skill investors can have up their sleeve is knowing how to value their stock. Without this knowledge, no investor can determine whether a company’s stock value is high or low with its performance and growth projections and performance. Before understanding how to measure stock value, an investor should first understand what stock is.

What is a Stock?

With a single share in a company, an investor has a fraction of the ownership stake in a company. To determine the percentage of ownership of the company as a stakeholder, one has to divide the number of shares they own by the number of shares outstanding. The answer is then multiplied by 100. When an investor owns stock in a company, they get income from paid dividends and corporate voting rights.

What is the Importance of Assigning Values to Stocks?

The intrinsic value of a stock does not always equate to its market price. Investors assign value to stocks to help them decide whether to buy them or not. However, there is no single way for investors to value a stock.

Active investors share the idea that they can develop and execute investment strategies that outdo the market-value stocks by treating their intrinsic value as different from the market price. They calculate multiple metrics to determine the intrinsic value and compare it to the current market price.

Passive investors, on the other hand, use the efficient market hypothesis. It assumes that the market value of a stock always equals its intrinsic value. They believe that the stock price offers a true reflection of its value since they think it has all the available info. Instead of trying to outsmart the market, passive investors recommend investing in exchange-traded funds or index funds.

How To Calculate The Value Of A Stock

Many investors use ratios to determine the value of a stock. Investors can also analyze stocks and determine their values at useThinkScript.com and below are some of the most common methods used to calculate the value of a stock.

Price-to-Earnings Ratio (P/E)

This method offers an idea of what an investor will pay for a company’s future earnings. It compares the recent earnings per share of a company against the market price. In most cases, the P/E is a number, often a multiple of the company’s income.

The P/E ratio comes in handy when comparing companies competing in the same industry. According to investors, a stock with a lower P/E is likely undervalued and cheaper. For instance, if one company has a P/E of 25 and the other has a P/E of 12. The company with a lower P/E offers a better value.

To calculate P/E, investors use the EPS figures available on a company’s website. They divide the current price per share by the EPS to determine the P/E. If available, use the adjusted EPS figures provided by a company.

Price/Earnings-to-Growth Ratio (PEG)

The price/earnings-to-growth ratio considers the growth of a company’s earnings. Most companies include the estimated earnings per share within the next year in their latest report. This method suits the comparison per performance between different companies based in the same industry. However, investors should note that no specific PEG ratio that qualifies as a definite “buy” signal exists. Most investors view stocks with a PEG ratio of less than one as undervalued. To calculate PEG, one divides the P/E ratio by the growth earnings per share (EPS).

Other Tips for Stock Valuation

Apart from the above ratios, investors can use a few more tips to get better insight into the relative value of a stock with similar companies. Below are some tips for investors looking for ways to determine if a stock has the right price.

• Analyst recommendations 

Most leading Wall Street banks such as JP Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Citibank, and Morgan Stanley often release reports with an analysis of different companies. The information includes a strong buy or sell or simple purchase or sell. They can also hold recommendations based on their idea of the direction the share price will take.

• Analyst price tags 

These reports include a price target for the stocks of a company. This indicates the price the stocks will potentially reach over the next 12 months, depending on the analysis of the company and entire market.

Although analyst reports may not offer ideal information about the intrinsic value or potential investment opportunities, they offer a broader picture of stock fundamentals.

In summary, fundamental analysis can help identify red flags or potential opportunities that the stock market is yet to price in, mainly when the market value and intrinsic value differ significantly.