Fact based stock research
Mothercare (LSE:MTC)

GB0009067447

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.

Mothercare stock research in summary

mothercareplc.com

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 4 (worse than 96% compared with investment alternatives), Mothercare (Department Stores, United Kingdom) shares have lower financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Mothercare are low in value (priced high) with a consolidated Value Rank of 36 (worse than 64% of alternatives) and show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 6) but are safely financed (Safety Rank of 51), which means low debt burdens. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 4, is a sell recommendation based on Mothercare's financial characteristics. As the company Mothercare's critical financial metrics exhibit below-average performance, such as low value (Obermatt Value Rank of 36) and low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 6), it is a somewhat questionable stock investment, where the risk of paying too much for the shares is significant, unless the company has an exceptionally bright future. In this case, good financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 51) are a positive sign, because it may allow the company to weather challenging times until the hoped-for cash flows materialize. This may be true for high-tech or biotechnology companies with enough cash to sustain prolonged business development. If they own properties that only provide cash flows in the future, the stock may look excessively expensive and unattractive today. In such cases, the Obermatt Method has limited value, as it is based on facts we can observe today. If the facts lie all in the future, stock investing becomes guesswork, and this should only be a driver in a limited number of investments that account for a small fraction of a safe portfolio. 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	36
Growth Rank	6
Safety Rank	51
Combined Rank	4

Country	United Kingdom
Industry	Department Stores
Index	SDG 11, SDG 12, SDG 13, SDG 8
Size class	Small

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: Mothercare

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	46	43	54	36
GROWTH
GROWTH	49	91	27	6
SAFETY
SAFETY	5	28	43	51
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	n/a	20	44	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	n/a	29	17	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 14-Nov-2024. Financial reporting date used for calculating ranks: 23-Sep-2023. Stock research history is based on the Obermatt Method. The higher the rank, the better Mothercare is in the corresponding investment strategy.
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Combined financial peformance in Detail

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	46	43	54	36
GROWTH
GROWTH	49	91	27	6
SAFETY
SAFETY	5	28	43	51
COMBINED
COMBINED	15	46	26	4

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

Value Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 36 (worse than 64% compared with alternatives), Mothercare shares are more expensive than the average comparable stock. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for Mothercare. Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price-earnings, P/E) is 57 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is lower than for 57% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning Mothercare'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 58, which means that the stock price is lower as regards to invested capital than for 58% of comparable investments. On the other hand, Price-to-Sales is less favorable than for 59% of alternatives (only 41% of peers have an even less favorable ratio). The same is valid for dividend yield, which is lower than for 99% of comparable companies, making the stock more expensive compared with the company's expected dividend payouts. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 36, is a hold recommendation based on Mothercare's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. This is a puzzling picture, because it means that profits are high while dividends are low. Since the stock price is low compared with invested capital but high concerning expected revenues, the company has more invested capital than peers for generating the same amount of revenue. Since profits are higher, it could be a "cash cow" situation (using the classic Boston Consulting Group or BCG matrix naming convention) where the company is on a downward trend, still living from the profits of past products. As the company pays low dividends, it may harbor the opinion that a turnaround is possible, and it rather invests the cash than distribute it to shareholders through dividends, thus sealing the company's fate early. Any investment optimism should only be a buy trigger once thorough research is completed. 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 especially important 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)	27	26	34	41
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	26	63	54	57
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	100	98	97	58
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	1	1	1	1
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	46	43	54	36

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

Growth Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 6 (better than 6% compared with alternatives), Mothercare 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 Mothercare. Sales Growth has a rank of 10, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow less than 90% of its competitors. The same is valid for Profit Growth, with a rank of 11, and Capital Growth with 31. In addition, Stock Returns have a below market rank of 24, which means that the stock returns have recently been below 76% of alternative investments. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 6, 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	9	4	24	10
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	59	90	91	11
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	n/a	98	14	31
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	82	89	28	24
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	49	91	27	6

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

Safety Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 51 (better than 51% compared with alternatives), the company Mothercare 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 Mothercare 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 just one indicator above average for Mothercare. Liquidity is at 98, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 98% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is safer when it comes to debt service. But Refinancing is riskier at a rank of 6, 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 94% 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 51 (better than 51% compared with alternatives), Mothercare has a financing structure that is safer 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	2021	2022	2023	2024
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE	57	54	5	37
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	18	31	46	6
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	8	28	98	98
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	5	28	43	51

Last update of Safety Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on safety metrics: The higher the rank, the lower the leverage of Mothercare 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	15	78	^new
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE	n/a	50	50	^new
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS	n/a	70	62	^new
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE	n/a	20	5	^new
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT	n/a	20	44	^new

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