Fact based stock research
Marks and Spencer (LSE:MKS)

GB0031274896

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.

Marks and Spencer stock research in summary

corporate.marksandspencer.com

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 73 (better than 73% compared with investment alternatives), Marks and Spencer (Food Retail, United Kingdom) shares have above-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Marks and Spencer are low in value (priced high) with a consolidated Value Rank of 39 (worse than 61% of alternatives), and are riskily financed (Safety Rank of 35, which means above-average debt burdens) but show above-average growth (Growth Rank of 94). ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 73, is a buy recommendation based on Marks and Spencer's financial characteristics. As the company Marks and Spencer shows low value with an Obermatt Value Rank of 39 (61% of comparable investments are less expensive), investors should look at the other ranks. In this case, growth is expected to be above-average, better than 94% of comparable companies (Obermatt Growth Rank is 94). This is a typical case. Companies with above average growth tend to cost more than stocks with slower growth expectations. If this is a high-growth company, the low Obermatt Safety Rank of 35 is a good sign. The more debt a well-performing company has, the higher the returns to shareholders. However, if growth turns negative or interest rates increase, high debt may become a burden. If you believe the future is bright for Marks and Spencer, even a low-value company (in terms of its key financial indicators) can be a good investment. 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	39
Growth Rank	94
Safety Rank	35
Combined Rank	73

Country	United Kingdom
Industry	Food Retail
Index	FTSE All Shares, FTSE 250, FTSE 350, Employee Focus EU, Human Rights, Renewables Users
Size class	XX-Large

This stock has achievements: Top 10 Stock.

27-Mar-2025. Stock data may be delayed. Log in or sign up to get the most recent research.

Further information

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

Research History: Marks and Spencer

RESEARCH HISTORY	2022	2023	2024	2025
VALUE
VALUE	87	64	49	39
GROWTH
GROWTH	87	93	94	94
SAFETY
SAFETY	13	15	30	35
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	79	58	82	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	83	70	84	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 27-Mar-2025. Financial reporting date used for calculating ranks: 30-Sep-2024. Stock research history is based on the Obermatt Method. The higher the rank, the better Marks and Spencer is in the corresponding investment strategy.
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Combined financial peformance in Detail

RESEARCH HISTORY	2022	2023	2024	2025
VALUE
VALUE	87	64	49	39
GROWTH
GROWTH	87	93	94	94
SAFETY
SAFETY	13	15	30	35
COMBINED
COMBINED	75	76	76	73

Last update of combined financial performance: 27-Mar-2025. Stock analysis on combined financial performance: The higher the rank of Marks and Spencer the better the performance.

Value Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 39 (worse than 61% compared with alternatives), Marks and Spencer shares are more expensive than the average comparable stock. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators below average for Marks and Spencer. Only Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price-earnings, P/E) indicates good stock value with a rank of 66, which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is lower than for 66% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning Marks and Spencer's profit levels. But Price-to-Sales is 44 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is higher than for 56% of comparable companies, indicating a low value concerning Marks and Spencer'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 44 and for dividend yield, which is lower than for 63% 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 39, is a hold recommendation based on Marks and Spencer'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 Marks and Spencer 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	2022	2023	2024	2025
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)	73	56	46	44
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	74	58	66	66
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	67	57	49	44
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	65	45	36	37
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	87	64	49	39

Last update of Value Rank: 27-Mar-2025. Stock analysis on value ratios: The higher the rank, the lower the value ratio of Marks and Spencer; except for dividend yield where the rank is higher, the higher the yield.

Growth Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 94 (better than 94% compared with alternatives) for 2025, Marks and Spencer shows one of the highest growth dynamics in its industry. Investors also speak of high momentum. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with all four indicators above average for Marks and Spencer. Sales Growth has a value of 51, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow more than 51% of its competitors. The same is valid for Profit Growth with a value of 65 and for Capital Growth with 74. In addition, Stock Returns had an above-average rank value of 91, which means they have been higher than 91% of comparable investments. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 94, is a buy recommendation for growth and momentum investors. Since all Growth Ranks are positive, Marks and Spencer exhibits above-average growth momentum. This could be due to a uniquely strong market position, proprietary technology, or an extensive corporate acquisition strategy. Growth investors will find this an attractive investment opportunity, unless they expect that the current phase is transitory and will deteriorate in the future. The current performance could also be a temporary recovery from a very low point, such as a turn-around situation. In the case of a turn-around, the current performance may or may not be followed by a continuing positive development. 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. ...read more

GROWTH METRICS	2022	2023	2024	2025
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH	16	34	45	51
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	98	77	77	65
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	59	59	73	74
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	95	100	91	91
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	87	93	94	94

Last update of Growth Rank: 27-Mar-2025. Stock analysis on growth metrics: The higher the rank, the higher the growth and returns of Marks and Spencer.

Safety Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 35 (better than 35% compared with alternatives), the company Marks and Spencer 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 Marks and Spencer 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 just one indicator above average for Marks and Spencer. Liquidity is at 63, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 63% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is safer when it comes to debt service. But Refinancing is riskier at a rank of 29, 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 71% of its competitors. Leverage is also high at a rank of 37, which means that the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 63% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 35 (worse than 65% compared with alternatives), Marks and Spencer has a financing structure that is riskier than that of its competitors. High Leverage (a low Obermatt Leverage Rank) is good in good times, because it usually indicates that shareholders get higher returns. The good Liquidity performance of the company is an indicator that this is the case. However, if you expect an economic downturn, you may stay clear of this stock because they have an above-average debt level that needs refinancing soon. If the company is sailing with good winds, as may be visible from the Growth and Sentiment performance, the refinancing risk may be lower than the low Refinancing rank suggests. ...read more

SAFETY METRICS	2022	2023	2024	2025
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE	27	34	38	37
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	23	25	28	29
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	29	37	60	63
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	13	15	30	35

Last update of Safety Rank: 27-Mar-2025. Stock analysis on safety metrics: The higher the rank, the lower the leverage of Marks and Spencer and the more cash is available to service its debt.

Sentiment Metrics in Detail

SENTIMENT	2022	2023	2024	2025
ANALYST OPINIONS
ANALYST OPINIONS	n/a	45	74	^new
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE	94	66	64	^new
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS	79	88	78	^new
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE	28	39	59	^new
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT	79	58	82	^new

Last update of Sentiment Rank: 27-Mar-2025. Stock analysis on sentiment metrics: The higher the rank, the more positive the sentiment for Marks and Spencer.
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