You might say that technology has enjoyed a renaissance over the last two years. Since the stock market bottom two years ago, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite has returned 115%. The Nasdaq 100 Index, as measured by the PowerShares QQQ Trust Series ETF (QQQQ), has returned a similar amount.
A quick glance at the chart below (click to enlarge) will show you tech's stellar resurgence.
Needless to say, bargains in the technology space have become fewer and farther between, despite tech's recent underperformance of the other major indexes. The awesome rise in the stock market in general has led me to analyze the valuations of these companies deeper than ever.
One of my favorite valuation methods is looking at the price/owner earnings ratio. To get the measurement, simply divide the companies levered free cash flow by the number of shares. That will give you the owner earnings per share. Divide the stock price by the owner earnings per share to get the price/owner earnings ratio. For an in-depth look at price/owner earnings, read this article by Seeking Alpha contributor, Peter Mycroft Psaras. Cash flow is arguably one of the most important metrics in evaluating a company, because it is not easily manipulated. It is easy to find a company's levered free cash flow in the "key statistics" area of Yahoo Finance.
For this article, I have identified eight technology companies that are trading under 10 times owner earnings. This is not a specific recommendation for these companies, although there are several on the list that I find attractive. I also included in the list several telecommunication companies, as they are somewhat involved in technology (wireless, broadband, video, etc.).
Nokia (NOK)
| NOK | |
| Recent Price | $8.34 |
| Market Cap | $30.90 B |
| Forward P/E | 11.46 |
| Dividend Yield | 6.42% |
| Price/Earnings Growth | 1.94 |
| Price/Owner Earnings | 4.37 |
Xerox (XRX)
| XRX | |
| Recent Price | $10.39 |
| Market Cap | $14.5 B |
| Forward P/E | 9.49 |
| Dividend Yield | 1.62% |
| Price/Earnings Growth | 0.9 |
| Price/Owner Earnings | 9.44 |
Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC)
| CSC | |
| Recent Price | $47.25 |
| Market Cap | $7.3 B |
| Forward P/E | 9.06 |
| Dividend Yield | 1.68% |
| Price/Earnings Growth | 0.97 |
| Price/Owner Earnings | 6.97 |
Micron Technology (MU)
| MU | |
| Recent Price | $11.03 |
| Market Cap | $11.0 B |
| Forward P/E | 18.93 |
| Dividend Yield | N/A |
| Price/Earnings Growth | 0.56 |
| Price/Owner Earnings | 7.21 |
Telefonica, S.A. (TEF)
| TEF | |
| Recent Price | $25.28 |
| Market Cap | $114.1 B |
| Forward P/E | 9.64 |
| Dividend Yield | 7.12% |
| Price/Earnings Growth | 1.1 |
| Price/Owner Earnings | 8.18 |
USA Mobility (USMO)
| USMO | |
| Recent Price | $13.15 |
| Market Cap | $290.2 M |
| Forward P/E | 6.52 |
| Dividend Yield | 7.45% |
| Price/Earnings Growth | N/A |
| Price/Owner Earnings | 6.26 |
CenturyLink (CTL)
| CTL | |
| Recent Price | $40.09 |
| Market Cap | $12.2 B |
| Forward P/E | 13.22 |
| Dividend Yield | 7.18% |
| Price/Earnings Growth | N/A |
| Price/Owner Earnings | 8.83 |
Sprint (S)
| S | |
| Recent Price | $4.48 |
| Market Cap | $13.4 B |
| Forward P/E | N/A |
| Dividend Yield | N/A |
| Price/Earnings Growth | N/A |
| Price/Owner Earnings | 4.35 |
These valuation metrics can provide you with a starting point for deeper research. Some of these stocks pay hefty dividends. Some have great earnings potential and trade at low price/earnings growth ratios. No matter what valuation metrics you prefer, don't forget cash flow.
Disclosure: I am long XRX, CTL.
No comments:
Post a Comment