Fact based stock research
Future (LSE:FUTR)

GB00BYZN9041

How to read the free 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.

Future stock research in summary

futureplc.com

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 23 (worse than 77% compared with investment alternatives), Future (Publishing, United Kingdom) shares have lower financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Future are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Value Rank of 54 (better than 54% of alternatives), are safely financed (Safety Rank of 61, which means low debt burdens), but show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 12). ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 23, is a sell recommendation based on Future's financial characteristics. As the company Future's key financial metrics exhibit good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 54) but low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 12) while being safely financed (Obermatt Safety Rank of 61), it may be a safer investment because companies with low debt can better withstand times of crises. Yet the good value, better than 54% of comparable companies, may also indicate that 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 and the downside is limited due to below-average financing risks. 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	54
Growth Rank	12
Safety Rank	61
Combined Rank	23

Country	United Kingdom
Industry	Publishing
Index	FTSE All Shares, FTSE 250, FTSE 350, Diversity Europe, Multimedia
Size class	Large

This stock has achievements: Top 10 Stock.

14-Nov-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.

Why popular stocks have low ratings

It’s easier said than done. When your stock drops, it’s easy to want to sell it and find a better performer. Think twice, or even three times, before trading. Those fees (especially the hidden ones) can eat up your gains.

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

Research History: Future

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	20	11	70	54
GROWTH
GROWTH	100	65	41	12
SAFETY
SAFETY	26	67	53	61
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	n/a	54	55	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	n/a	51	60	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 14-Nov-2024. Financial reporting date used for calculating ranks: 31-Mar-2024. Stock research history is based on the Obermatt Method. The higher the rank, the better Future is in the corresponding investment strategy.
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Combined financial peformance in Detail

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	20	11	70	54
GROWTH
GROWTH	100	65	41	12
SAFETY
SAFETY	26	67	53	61
COMBINED
COMBINED	35	48	64	23

Last update of combined financial performance: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on combined financial performance: The higher the rank of Future the better the performance.

Value Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 54 (better than 54% compared with alternatives), Future shares are more attractively priced than the majority of comparable stocks. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators below average for Future. Only Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price-earnings, P/E) indicates good stock value with a rank of 85, which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is lower than for 85% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning Future's profit levels. But Price-to-Sales is 37 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is higher than for 63% of comparable companies, indicating a low value concerning Future's profit levels. The same is valid for Price-to-Book Capital (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) with a Price-to-Book Rank of 42 and for dividend yield, which is lower than for 58% of comparable companies, making the stock more expensive as regards to the company's expected dividend payouts. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 54, is a buy recommendation based on Future's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. Can we rely on only one good value indicator? Only if we know the company well. In this case, a high Price-to-Profit Rank, while Price-to-Sales and Price-to-Book are both below the market typical levels, means that the company can charge higher prices for its products and needs less capital to produce them. If this is sustainable, then Future is a good investment because profits count most in enterprise valuations. The low dividend yield indicates that the company is confident it can do something with the generated cash that is more valuable than paying the profits out to the shareholders in the form of dividends. We recommend further analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks, including the 360° View, before making an investment decision, which is essential in this case, as the financial indicators are inconclusive. ...read more

VALUE METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)	20	11	49	37
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	43	42	92	85
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	14	35	76	42
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	42	33	37	42
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	20	11	70	54

Last update of Value Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on value ratios: The higher the rank, the lower the value ratio of Future; except for dividend yield where the rank is higher, the higher the yield.

Growth Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 12 (better than 12% compared with alternatives), Future shows one of the most restricted growth dynamics in its industry. There is little momentum in this company. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with all four metrics below average for Future. Sales Growth has a rank of 8, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow less than 92% of its competitors. The same is valid for Profit Growth, with a rank of 21, and Capital Growth with 41. In addition, Stock Returns have a below market rank of 32, which means that the stock returns have recently been below 68% of alternative investments. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 12, is a sell recommendation for growth and momentum investors. These are all bad growth momentum indicators. These are negative signals for investors interested in growth companies. Value is likely good for this company, as investors may have left this stock in the cold. If that is the case, investors should look at the company's outlook, especially Sentiment performance, because it may be a turnaround situation that could entail above-average stock returns in the future. But it remains a risky bet, as no growth signals are in the green zone yet. 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 low here. ...read more

GROWTH METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH	95	33	33	8
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	n/a	50	42	21
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	n/a	52	76	41
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	88	93	11	32
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	100	65	41	12

Last update of Growth Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on growth metrics: The higher the rank, the higher the growth and returns of Future.

Safety Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 61 (better than 61% compared with alternatives), the company Future has financing practices on the safer side, which mean that their overall debt burden is lower than average. This doesn't mean that the business of Future is safe, it only means that the company is on the safer side regarding possible bankruptcy, 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 Future. Leverage is at a rank of 56, meaning the company has a below-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has less debt than 56% of its competitors. Liquidity is also good at a rank of 56, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 56% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is on the safer side when it comes to debt service. But Refinancing is lower at a rank of 43, which means that the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is above-average. It has more debt in the refinancing stage than 57% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 61 (better than 61% compared with alternatives), Future has a financing structure that is safer than that of its competitors. The refinancing issues could be a short-term problem, especially if the company has reputation issues. Banks and investors don't like to refinance debt if there are clouds on the horizon. For this reason, investors should look at the refinancing environment for Future. Does it look safe that debt that is coming due can be covered with new debt? If that is the case, then the financing situation of the company is on the safer side. If not, it may be better to wait until refinancing has been completed and the Refinancing rank is good again. Investors may have a short-term debt challenge with Future and should also compare Obermatt’s Value, Growth, and Sentiment Ranks before making a decision. ...read more

SAFETY METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE	48	54	55	56
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	20	51	40	43
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	50	73	47	56
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	26	67	53	61

Last update of Safety Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on safety metrics: The higher the rank, the lower the leverage of Future 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	82	52	^new
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE	n/a	18	5	^new
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS	n/a	14	61	^new
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE	n/a	78	78	^new
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT	n/a	54	55	^new

Last update of Sentiment Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on sentiment metrics: The higher the rank, the more positive the sentiment for Future.
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