City Developments Limited (SGX:C09), is not the largest company out there, but it saw a decent share price growth in the teens level on the SGX over the last few months. With many analysts covering the mid-cap stock, we may expect any price-sensitive announcements have already been factored into the stock's share price. But what if there is still an opportunity to buy? Let's examine City Developments's valuation and outlook in more detail to determine if there's still a bargain opportunity.

Check out our latest analysis for City Developments

What's The Opportunity In City Developments?

According to my price multiple model, which makes a comparison between the company's price-to-earnings ratio and the industry average, the stock price seems to be justfied. I've used the price-to-earnings ratio in this instance because there's not enough visibility to forecast its cash flows. The stock's ratio of 5.95x is currently trading slightly below its industry peers' ratio of 7.85x, which means if you buy City Developments today, you'd be paying a reasonable price for it. And if you believe City Developments should be trading in this range, then there isn't much room for the share price to grow beyond the levels of other industry peers over the long-term. In addition to this, it seems like City Developments's share price is quite stable, which could mean there may be less chances to buy low in the future now that it's trading around the price multiples of other industry peers. This is because the stock is less volatile than the wider market given its low beta.

Can we expect growth from City Developments?

Future outlook is an important aspect when you're looking at buying a stock, especially if you are an investor looking for growth in your portfolio. Buying a great company with a robust outlook at a cheap price is always a good investment, so let's also take a look at the company's future expectations. However, with an extremely negative double-digit change in profit expected over the next couple of years, near-term growth is certainly not a driver of a buy decision. It seems like high uncertainty is on the cards for City Developments, at least in the near future.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? C09 seems priced close to industry peers right now, but given the uncertainty from negative returns in the future, this could be the right time to de-risk your portfolio. Is your current exposure to the stock beneficial for your total portfolio? And is the opportunity cost of holding a negative-outlook stock too high? Before you make a decision on C09, take a look at whether its fundamentals have changed.

Are you a potential investor? If you've been keeping tabs on C09 for a while, now may not be the most advantageous time to buy, given it is trading around industry price multiples. This means there's less benefit from mispricing. Furthermore, the negative growth outlook increases the risk of holding the stock. However, there are also other important factors we haven't considered today, which can help crystallize your views on C09 should the price fluctuate below the industry PE ratio.

So if you'd like to dive deeper into this stock, it's crucial to consider any risks it's facing. When we did our research, we found 4 warning signs for City Developments (2 are concerning!) that we believe deserve your full attention.

If you are no longer interested in City Developments, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.