Fact based stock research
SMS (TSE:2175)

JP3162350007

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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.

SMS stock research in summary

bm-sms.co.jp

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 51 (better than 51% compared with investment alternatives), SMS (HR- & Employment Services, Japan) shares have above-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of SMS are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Value Rank of 69 (better than 69% of alternatives), are safely financed (Safety Rank of 55, which means low debt burdens), but show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 31). ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 51, is a buy recommendation based on SMS's financial characteristics. As the company SMS's key financial metrics exhibit good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 69) but low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 31) while being safely financed (Obermatt Safety Rank of 55), it may be a safer investment because companies with low debt can better withstand times of crises. Yet the good value, better than 69% 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	69
Growth Rank	31
Safety Rank	55
Combined Rank	51

Country	Japan
Industry	HR- & Employment Services
Index
Size class	Small

31-Jul-2025. 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: SMS

RESEARCH HISTORY	2022	2023	2024	2025
VALUE
VALUE	31	28	73	69
GROWTH
GROWTH	41	37	29	31
SAFETY
SAFETY	28	51	73	55
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	67	94	25	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	21	63	39	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 31-Jul-2025. Financial reporting date used for calculating ranks: 31-Mar-2025. Stock research history is based on the Obermatt Method. The higher the rank, the better SMS is in the corresponding investment strategy.
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Combined financial peformance in Detail

RESEARCH HISTORY	2022	2023	2024	2025
VALUE
VALUE	31	28	73	69
GROWTH
GROWTH	41	37	29	31
SAFETY
SAFETY	28	51	73	55
COMBINED
COMBINED	8	15	61	51

Last update of combined financial performance: 31-Jul-2025. Stock analysis on combined financial performance: The higher the rank of SMS the better the performance.

Value Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 69 (better than 69% compared with alternatives), SMS shares are more attractively priced than the majority of comparable stocks. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators that are all above average for SMS. Price-to-Sales is 63 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future sales is lower than for 63% of comparable companies, indicating a good value for SMS's revenue size. The same is valid for expected Price-to-Profits, more favorable than for 70% 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 63. Compared with other companies in the same industry, dividend yields of SMS are expected to be higher than for 66% of all competitors (a Dividend Yield rank of 66). ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 69, is a buy recommendation based on SMS'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 SMS 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	2022	2023	2024	2025
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)	26	29	64	63
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	26	27	72	70
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	20	14	65	63
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	48	51	72	66
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	31	28	73	69

Last update of Value Rank: 31-Jul-2025. Stock analysis on value ratios: The higher the rank, the lower the value ratio of SMS; except for dividend yield where the rank is higher, the higher the yield.

Growth Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 31 (better than 31% compared with alternatives), SMS 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 SMS. Sales Growth has a rank of 54, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow more than 54% of its competitors. Profit Growth with a rank of 65 is also above average. But Capital Growth has only a rank of 17, and Stock Returns with 11 are also below-average. Stock returns for SMS have recently been below 89% of alternative investments. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 31, is a hold recommendation for growth and momentum investors. Are investors forecasting troubles based on the lack of operating investment activity at the company? This could be one explanation as to why stock returns are low. But stock returns can also be the result of correcting an error in the past, in this case, an overly optimistic outlook on the future, which is now more realistic. The Value Ranks may confirm such a picture. The more important growth indicators are revenues and profits, which are both above average for SMS. This is a positive sign from the company's operational side and may give investors courage, despite the poor recent stock price performance. 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 the Obermatt 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	2022	2023	2024	2025
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH	52	77	64	54
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	43	46	8	65
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	51	23	77	17
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	47	29	5	11
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	41	37	29	31

Last update of Growth Rank: 31-Jul-2025. Stock analysis on growth metrics: The higher the rank, the higher the growth and returns of SMS.

Safety Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 55 (better than 55% compared with alternatives), the company SMS 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 SMS 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 SMS. Refinancing is at 53, meaning the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is below average. It has less debt in the refinancing stage than 53% of its competitors. Liquidity is also good at 62, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 62% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is safer when it comes to debt service. However, Leverage is rather large at 45, which means the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 55% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 55 (better than 55% compared with alternatives), SMS has a financing structure that is safer 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 SMS 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. In the long-term, investors may have a debt challenge with SMS and should also compare Obermatt’s Value, Growth, and Sentiment Ranks before making a decision. ...read more

SAFETY METRICS	2022	2023	2024	2025
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE	17	40	49	45
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	27	31	59	53
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	60	73	73	62
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	28	51	73	55

Last update of Safety Rank: 31-Jul-2025. Stock analysis on safety metrics: The higher the rank, the lower the leverage of SMS 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	89	29	^new
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE	50	89	8	^new
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS	100	70	30	^new
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE	70	75	78	^new
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT	67	94	25	^new

Last update of Sentiment Rank: 31-Jul-2025. Stock analysis on sentiment metrics: The higher the rank, the more positive the sentiment for SMS.
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