October 3, 2024
Top 10 Stock FMC Buy Recommendation
How to read the ranks
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.
Snapshot: FMC – Top 10 Stock in SDG 2: Zero Hunger
FMC is listed as a top 10 stock on October 03, 2024 in the market index SDG 2 because of its high performance in at least one of the Obermatt investment strategies. Only the Obermatt Value Rank exhibits above-average performance, which means that the stock is seen as critical by the professional community and other financial facts are below average, conveying mixed investment signals. Based on the Obermatt 360° View of 55 (high 55% performer), Obermatt assesses an overall buy recommendation for FMC on October 03, 2024.
Snapshot: Obermatt Ranks
When Obermatt identifies the Top 10 stocks in a market, it’s based on a certain investment strategy. The best performing stocks usually aren’t the ones that everyone is talking about (those are often "over-priced" and have low Value ranks).
For each investment strategy, we provide you with more detailed analysis and our recommendation. You see the ranks of the top 10 stocks ranked by that particular investment strategy (360° View, Sentiment, Value, Growth, Safety and Combined Financial Performance).
360° View: Obermatt 360° View FMC Buy
| 360 METRICS | October 3, 2024 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 93 |
|
||||||
| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 49 |
|
||||||
| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 43 |
|
||||||
| SENTIMENT | ||||||||
| SENTIMENT | 33 |
|
||||||
| 360° VIEW | ||||||||
| 360° VIEW | 55 |
|
||||||
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt 360° View of 55 (better than 55% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and financial characteristics for the stock FMC are above average. The 360° View is based on consolidating four consolidated indicators, with three out of four indicators below average for FMC. Only the consolidated Value Rank has an attractive rank of 93, which means that the share price of FMC is on the lower side compared with the typical size in indicators such as revenues, profits, and invested capital. This means that the stock price is lower than for 93% of alternative stocks in the same industry. All other consolidated ranks are below average. The consolidated Growth Rank has a low rank of 49, which means that the company exhibits below-average growth momentum when looking at financial metrics such as revenue, profit, and invested capital growth as well as stock returns. The consolidated Safety Rank has a riskier rank of 43, meaning the company has a riskier financing structure than 57% comparable companies when looking at the amount of its debt, its refinancing requirements, and its ability to service debt. Finally, professionals are more pessimistic about the stock than for 67% of alternative investment opportunities, reflected in the consolidated Sentiment Rank of 33. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated 360° View of 55, FMC is better positioned than 55% of all alternative stock investment opportunities based on the Obermatt Method. Only one of the consolidated Obermatt Ranks exhibits above-average performance, namely the Value Rank at a level of 93. All other ranks are below average, so proceed with caution. The company has below-average growth expectations (Growth Rank of 49), a riskier financing structure than the competition (Safety Rank of 43), and the market sentiment in the professional investor community ranking at (Sentiment Rank of 33) is negative. This combination is sensitive to a crisis, because high debt levels (low safety) require growth to finance the debt burden. It’s no wonder that the investor community indicators are skeptical (low sentiment). Good value is sometimes an indication that the company's future is challenging. The below-par growth performance may be the reason for this assessment. We recommend evaluating whether the future of FMC is as challenging as the low price of the stock suggests. Since the professional community is pessimistic, you might need to worry about the future of FMC. Only invest if you have solid reasons to believe that the low growth is temporary and the current market sentiment is an overreaction, possibly due to reputational issues in the past. ...read more
Sentiment Strategy: Professional Market Sentiment for FMC only reserved
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Sentiment Rank of 33 (better than 33% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and engagement for the stock FMC is below industry average. The Sentiment Rank is based on consolidating four sentiment indicators, with half the indicators below and the other half above average for FMC. Analyst Opinions are at a rank of 27 (worse than 73% of alternative investments), which means that currently, stock research analysts tend to warn against investing in the stock of the company. Worse, Analyst Opinions Change has a rank of 47, which means that stock research experts are getting more pessimistic. It doesn't end with the analysts. Market Pulse is also low with a rank of 10, which means that the current professional news and professional social networks tend to be negative when discussing this company (more negative news than for 90% of competitors). On the upside, the Professional Investors rank is 92, which means that professional investors hold more stock in this company than in 92% of alternative investment opportunities. Pros tend to favor investing in this company. This could be due to a large company size, which could contribute to the higher share of professional investors in the company. If this is not the case, the low sentiment ranks are more challenging to explain. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Sentiment Rank of 33 (less encouraging than 67% compared with investment alternatives), FMC has a reputation among professional investors that is below that of its competitors. Should the company be on the smaller side, the presence of professional investors could be reassuring. That would make FMC stock something like a hidden gem. Investors should make sure with further research that this is true, because all other sentiment indicators are negative which is a sign for caution. ...read more
Value Strategy: FMC Stock Price Value at the top
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 93 (better than 93% compared with alternatives) for 2024, FMC shares are significantly less expensive than comparable stocks. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators that are all above average for FMC. Price-to-Sales is 57 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future sales is lower than for 57% of comparable companies, indicating a good value for FMC's revenue size. The same is valid for expected Price-to-Profits, more favorable than for 69% 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 64. Compared with other companies in the same industry, dividend yields of FMC are expected to be higher than for 94% of all competitors (a Dividend Yield rank of 94). ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 93, is a buy recommendation based on FMC'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 FMC based on its detailed value metrics.
Growth Strategy: FMC Growth Momentum low
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 49 (better than 49% compared with alternatives), FMC shows a below-average growth dynamic in its industry. There is limited momentum in this company. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for FMC. Sales Growth has a rank of 56 which means that currently, professionals expect the company to grow more than 56% of its competitors. Capital Growth is also above 24% of competitors with a rank of 84. But Profit Growth only has a rank of 24, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow its profits less than 76% of its competitors. And Stock Returns have also been below average with a rank of only 45. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 49, is a hold recommendation for growth and momentum investors. Profits are sometimes low if the company invests in the future. The positive revenue and capital investment outlook confirms such an interpretation. Both revenues and capital are solid growth indicators, and lower profits in such a case would be encouraging. But the investors see it differently by punishing the share price. Sometimes, Mister Market is not very reliable, because it is not uncommon for it to be volatile. Investors should look out for signs of growth expenditure that could justify low profit growth, and they may also find reasons why recent stock price developments don't confirm the growth outlook of operations. While operating growth indicators are not perfect, they are more reliable indicators for future performance than stock prices that can repeatedly surprise investors. ...read more
Safety Strategy: FMC Debt Financing Safety below-average
| SAFETY METRICS | October 3, 2024 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LEVERAGE | ||||||||
| LEVERAGE | 33 |
|
||||||
| REFINANCING | ||||||||
| REFINANCING | 61 |
|
||||||
| LIQUIDITY | ||||||||
| LIQUIDITY | 50 |
|
||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | 43 |
|
||||||
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 43 (better than 43% compared with alternatives), the company FMC has financing practices on the riskier side, which means that their overall debt burden is above the industry average. This doesn't mean that the business of FMC 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 two out of three indicators above-average for FMC. Refinancing is at 61, meaning the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is below average. It has less debt in the refinancing stage than 61% of its competitors. Liquidity is also good at 50, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 50% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is safer when it comes to debt service. However, Leverage is rather large at 33, which means the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 67% of its competitors. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 43 (worse than 57% compared with alternatives), FMC has a financing structure that is riskier than that of its competitors. This is not bad if things go well. The higher debt level means better returns to shareholders if things go well. Many top-performing companies operate with higher debt levels, and FMC could be in that group. But if you expect the environment to turn rougher, the higher leverage could become a problem. The same is valid if you expect interest rates to rise. That could squeeze shareholder returns, which so far have benefitted from better conditions. ...read more
Combined financial peformance: FMC Above-Average Financial Performance
| COMBINED PERFORMANCE | October 3, 2024 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 93 |
|
||||||
| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 49 |
|
||||||
| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 50 |
|
||||||
| COMBINED | ||||||||
| COMBINED | 69 |
|
||||||
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 69 (better than 69% compared with investment alternatives), FMC (Fertilizers & Agricultural Chemicals, USA) shares have above-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of FMC are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Value Rank of 93 (better than 93% of alternatives) but show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 49), and are riskily financed (Safety Rank of 43), which means above-average debt burdens. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 69, is a buy recommendation based on FMC's financial characteristics. As the company FMC's key financial metrics exhibit good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 93) but low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 49) and risky financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 43), it may be a risky investment, because debt in times of crises can make things worse. The good value, better than 93% of comparable companies, may indicate the company's future is challenging. If you believe that low growth is temporary or just due to a specific current event, you may conclude that the good value of the stock provides an attractive investment opportunity. ...read more
Obermatt Portfolio Performance
We’re so convinced about our research, that we buy our stock tips.
See the performance of the Obermatt portfolio.