Quant Scorecard Update and Review For Afcon Holdings Ltd. (TASE:AFHL) After GM Score Hits 27.00000

Investors having Afcon Holdings Ltd. (TASE:AFHL) on their watchlists might want to take into consideration the Gross Margin Score of the firm. Afcon Holdings Ltd. currently has a score of 27.00000. This score is derived from the Gross Margin (Marx) stability and growth over the previous eight years. The Gross Margin score lands on a scale from 1 to 100 where a score of 1 would be considered positive, and a score of 100 would be seen as negative.  The low score of 27.00000 for Afcon Holdings Ltd. indicates a top score for stability and growth.

Diversification can be an important aspect of any investor’s portfolio. Investors may choose to spread out stock holdings between foreign stocks and stocks with different market capitalizations. Investors may have to first become aware of the risk associated with owning a wide variety of stocks. Owning stocks that belong to different industries may also be a help to the success of the portfolio. Often times, sectors may trade off being market leaders. Owning all one sector may leave too much risk exposed if the sector suddenly tanks and falls out of favor with investors. Investors may need to occasionally do a strategic review of the equity portion of the portfolio. Knowing exactly what is held may help the investor when the time comes to make some adjustments.

The Piotroski F-Score is a scoring system between 1-9 that determines a firm’s financial strength.  The score helps determine if a company’s stock is valuable or not.  The Piotroski F-Score of Afcon Holdings Ltd. (TASE:AFHL) is 5.  A score of nine indicates a high value stock, while a score of one indicates a low value stock.  The score is calculated by the return on assets (ROA), Cash flow return on assets (CFROA), change in return of assets, and quality of earnings.  It is also calculated by a change in gearing or leverage, liquidity, and change in shares in issue.  The score is also determined by change in gross margin and change in asset turnover.

Turning to valuation, Afcon Holdings Ltd. (TASE:AFHL) has a Value Composite score of 28. Developed by James O’Shaughnessy, the VC score uses five valuation ratios. These ratios are price to earnings, price to cash flow, EBITDA to EV, price to book value, and price to sales. The VC is displayed as a number between 1 and 100. In general, a company with a score closer to 0 would be seen as undervalued, and a score closer to 100 would indicate an overvalued company. Adding a sixth ratio, shareholder yield, we can view the Value Composite 2 score which is currently sitting at 25.

At the time of writing, Afcon Holdings Ltd. (TASE:AFHL) has a Piotroski F-Score of 5. The F-Score may help discover companies with strengthening balance sheets. The score may also be used to spot the weak performers. Joseph Piotroski developed the F-Score which employs nine different variables based on the company financial statement. A single point is assigned to each test that a stock passes. Typically, a stock scoring an 8 or 9 would be seen as strong. On the other end, a stock with a score from 0-2 would be viewed as weak.

Afcon Holdings Ltd. (TASE:AFHL) has a current ERP5 Rank of 6010 . The ERP5 Rank may assist investors with spotting companies that are undervalued. This ranking uses four ratios. These ratios are Earnings Yield, ROIC, Price to Book, and 5 year average ROIC. When looking at the ERP5 ranking, it is generally considered the lower the value, the better.

Investors might be trying to figure out the best way to approach the stock market. After creating a plan that includes a list of stocks to purchase, investors may be looking to gauge the best time to enter the trade. With markets still cruising along at high altitudes, investors may be worried about buying at the top. Most individuals would probably agree that getting out before the market drops would be the best play. Obviously this is much easier said than done. If the warning signs were blatant, everyone would know exactly when to sell and when to re-buy. When the stock market has a big decline, the natural instinct is generally to sell in order to protect gains or eliminate further losses. Trying to time the market can have negative implications for investors who are not prepared to handle extremely volatile market conditions. Being prepared for any sudden change in the overall economy or stock market conditions may help the investor stay afloat for the long haul.

Shifting gears, we can see that Afcon Holdings Ltd. (TASE:AFHL) has a Q.i. Value of 24.00000. The Q.i. Value ranks companies using four ratios. These ratios consist of EBITDA Yield, FCF Yield, Liquidity, and Earnings Yield. The purpose of the Q.i. Value is to help identify companies that are the most undervalued. Typically, the lower the value, the more undervalued the company tends to be.

PI & Volatility

Stock volatility is a percentage that indicates whether a stock is a desirable purchase.  Investors look at the Volatility 12m to determine if a company has a low volatility percentage or not over the course of a year.  The Volatility 12m of Afcon Holdings Ltd. (TASE:AFHL) is 23.314200.  This is calculated by taking weekly log normal returns and standard deviation of the share price over one year annualized.  The lower the number, a company is thought to have low volatility.  The Volatility 3m is a similar percentage determined by the daily log normal returns and standard deviation of the share price over 3 months.  The Volatility 3m of Afcon Holdings Ltd. (TASE:AFHL) is 33.558100.  The Volatility 6m is the same, except measured over the course of six months.  The Volatility 6m is 28.832100.

As the next round of earnings reports come into the spotlight next quarter, investors may be deciding how to get into the best position to make the most profitable trades. Earnings reports have the ability to influence stock prices dramatically. Sometimes it can be hard to figure out which way the price will go even if the reported numbers are up to snuff. Some investors enjoy the frantic trading opportunities around earnings reports, and others will stay as far away as possible. Even if the investor isn’t planning on making any moves during earnings season, it may be wise to follow what companies are reporting. If the numbers from a certain holding come in way out of whack, it may be necessary to do some in-depth research to try and find out the reason. Investors that make sure that all the bases are covered will typically find it easier to make sense out of certain anomalies that pop up in the markets from time to time. Putting in the extra time and effort to understand the ins and outs of a particular stock may help boost the novice investor up to the next level. Every investor wants their trades to be profitable, and doing that little extra piece of homework could be just what the finance doctor ordered for staying on top of the stock market.   

We can now take a quick look at some historical stock price index data. Afcon Holdings Ltd. (TASE:AFHL) presently has a 10 month price index of 1.07667. The price index is calculated by dividing the current share price by the share price ten months ago. A ratio over one indicates an increase in share price over the period. A ratio lower than one shows that the price has decreased over that time period. Looking at some alternate time periods, the 12 month price index is 0.94551, the 24 month is 1.15912, and the 36 month is 1.70834. Narrowing in a bit closer, the 5 month price index is 1.10373, the 3 month is 0.97082, and the 1 month is currently 0.94061.

Stock market investors are typically searching for solid quality companies to help boost the portfolio. There are plenty of quality companies out there, the tricky part may be determining what constitutes as quality. Many investors look for companies that are solid sales leaders within a market that is growing. Going further, investors may be studying a company’s proven track record and gauging the competence of current management. Adding other factors such as brand recognition and prospects for steady growth, investors may eventually find a company that is worth taking the risk for future returns.