Fact based stock research
Empire (TSX:EMP.A)

CA2918434077

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For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".

Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".

Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.

Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.

(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).

(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.

Empire stock research in summary

empireco.ca

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 56 (better than 56% compared with investment alternatives), Empire (Food Retail, Canada) shares have above-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Empire are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Value Rank of 77 (better than 77% of alternatives), show above-average growth (Growth Rank of 65) but are riskily financed (Safety Rank of 17), which means above-average debt burdens. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 56, is a buy recommendation based on Empire's financial characteristics. As the company Empire's key financial metrics exhibit excellent performance in two areas, such as good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 77) and above-average growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 65), it could be argued that the risk-taking in financing (Obermatt Safety Rank of only 17) indicates that the company is optimistic about the future and sees debt as an opportunity to boost returns. More debt means more shareholder returns if everything goes well. However, higher debt burdens are risky when interest rates rise or the business deteriorates in a crisis. If you believe the company's future is market-typical or even better, this could be an argument for a share purchase. Obermatt Premium subscribers can further check the stock’s Sentiment Ranks, which also flow into the Obermatt 360° View for investors. ...read more

Latest Obermatt Ranks


360° View^new
Sentiment Rank^new
Value Rank	77
Growth Rank	65
Safety Rank	17
Combined Rank	56

Country	Canada
Industry	Food Retail
Index	TSX Composite
Size class	XX-Large

19-Dec-2024. Stock data may be delayed. Log in or sign up to get the most recent research.

Further information

Multiple opinions. One number.

Analysts rarely agree on a stock’s future. So, who do you believe? Obermatt translates those collective views into a single Sentiment Rank. That plus the financial ranks give you the ultimate 360° View. Sign up to access them.

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Review the performance ranks of the individual metrics that form each investment strategy.

Research History: Empire

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	63	79	73	77
GROWTH
GROWTH	13	27	23	65
SAFETY
SAFETY	17	32	18	17
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	n/a	49	12	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	n/a	37	8	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 19-Dec-2024. Financial reporting date used for calculating ranks: 3-Aug-2024. Stock research history is based on the Obermatt Method. The higher the rank, the better Empire is in the corresponding investment strategy.
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Combined financial peformance in Detail

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	63	79	73	77
GROWTH
GROWTH	13	27	23	65
SAFETY
SAFETY	17	32	18	17
COMBINED
COMBINED	26	42	19	56

Last update of combined financial performance: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on combined financial performance: The higher the rank of Empire the better the performance.

Value Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 77 (better than 77% compared with alternatives) for 2024, Empire shares are significantly less expensive than comparable stocks. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators that are all above average for Empire. Price-to-Sales is 69 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future sales is lower than for 69% of comparable companies, indicating a good value for Empire's revenue size. The same is valid for expected Price-to-Profits, more favorable than for 67% of alternatives, and this is also true for the Price-to-Book capital ratio (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) with a Price-to-Capital Rank of 57. Compared with other companies in the same industry, dividend yields of Empire are expected to be higher than for 67% of all competitors (a Dividend Yield rank of 67). ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 77, is a buy recommendation based on Empire's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. Since all value metrics are above the industry average, there is no objection to investing in Empire based on its detailed value metrics. We recommend further analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks, including the 360° View, before making an investment decision. ...read more

VALUE METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)	77	73	70	69
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	59	64	80	67
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	50	65	42	57
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	42	66	75	67
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	63	79	73	77

Last update of Value Rank: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on value ratios: The higher the rank, the lower the value ratio of Empire; except for dividend yield where the rank is higher, the higher the yield.

Growth Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 65 (better than 65% compared with alternatives), Empire shows an above-average growth dynamic in its industry. Investors also speak of positive momentum. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for Empire. Profit Growth has a rank of 67, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow its profits more than 67% of its competitors. This is a good sign for shareholders, which is confirmed by an above-average Stock Returns rank of 77 (above 77% of alternative investments). But Sales Growth has a below the median rank of 37, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow less than 63% of its competitors, and Capital Growth also has a lower rank of 40. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 65, is a buy recommendation for growth and momentum investors. Because revenues and invested capital are the more solid growth indicators, the positive development on the profit side is less relevant. It may have been caused by cost-cutting, which may be a negative growth indicator. Finally, the above-average stock returns recently are a thing of the past and not a good indicator of future returns. Investors should be confident that the cost-cutting initiative leading to higher profits is to benefit the company's future. If not, there is little growth momentum, and investment is only advisable if the Value Ranks suggest a good investment timing for Empire. While momentum is a popular investment factor, the value aspect might be the more important one, in the longer term. We recommend analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks to arrive at a 360° View of the stock purchase case, especially since the growth performance is mixed here. ...read more

GROWTH METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH	23	13	42	37
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	20	34	55	67
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	n/a	69	14	40
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	37	41	37	77
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	13	27	23	65

Last update of Growth Rank: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on growth metrics: The higher the rank, the higher the growth and returns of Empire.

Safety Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 17 (better than 17% compared with alternatives), the company Empire has much riskier financing practices than comparable other companies, which means that their overall debt burden is significantly above the industry average. This doesn't mean that the business of Empire is also risky, it only means that the company is on the riskier side in respect to bankruptcy in case things turn sour, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, with all three metrics below average for Empire. Liquidity is at 39, meaning that the company generates less profit to service its debt than 61% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is on the riskier side when it comes to debt service. Even worse, Leverage is at a rank of 38, meaning the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 62% of its competitors. Finally, Refinancing is at a rank of 21 which means that the portion of the debt about to be refinanced is above average. It has more debt in the refinancing stage than 79% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 17 (worse than 83% compared with alternatives), Empire has a financing structure that is significantly riskier than that of its competitors. This combination is rather dangerous in most situations. Only very promising companies with bright future outlooks and stellar reputations can operate with such risky financing. Investors should look at Obermatt’s Value, Growth, and Sentiment Ranks to confirm a very positive outlook or be careful with investing in stocks of Empire because it may suffer significantly in case of future difficulties. ...read more

SAFETY METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE	27	40	42	38
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	27	19	31	21
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	54	63	34	39
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	17	32	18	17

Last update of Safety Rank: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on safety metrics: The higher the rank, the lower the leverage of Empire and the more cash is available to service its debt.

Sentiment Metrics in Detail

SENTIMENT	2021	2022	2023	2024
ANALYST OPINIONS
ANALYST OPINIONS	n/a	64	24	^new
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE	n/a	32	4	^new
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS	n/a	21	33	^new
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE	n/a	80	76	^new
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT	n/a	49	12	^new

Last update of Sentiment Rank: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on sentiment metrics: The higher the rank, the more positive the sentiment for Empire.
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