March 14, 2024
Top 10 Stock Kier Buy Recommendation
How to read the 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.
Snapshot: Kier – Top 10 Stock in Customer Satisfaction Leaders in Europe
Kier is listed as a top 10 stock on March 14, 2024 in the market index Customer Focus EU because of its high performance in at least one of the Obermatt investment strategies. As three out of four consolidated Obermatt Ranks exhibit excellent performance, it is a solid investment where the risk of paying too much for the shares is low. Based on the Obermatt 360° View of 68 (high 68% performer), Obermatt assesses an overall buy recommendation for Kier on March 14, 2024.
Snapshot: Obermatt Ranks
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Industry | Construction & Engineering |
| Index | FTSE All Shares, Customer Focus EU, SDG 13, SDG 14, SDG 15 |
| Size class | X-Large |
When Obermatt identifies the Top 10 stocks in a market, it’s based on a certain investment strategy. The best performing stocks usually aren’t the ones that everyone is talking about (those are often "over-priced" and have low Value ranks).
For each investment strategy, we provide you with more detailed analysis and our recommendation. You see the ranks of the top 10 stocks ranked by that particular investment strategy (360° View, Sentiment, Value, Growth, Safety and Combined Financial Performance).
360° View: Obermatt 360° View Kier Buy
| 360 METRICS | March 14, 2024 | |||||||
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| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 81 |
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| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 73 |
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| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 9 |
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| SENTIMENT | ||||||||
| SENTIMENT | 91 |
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| 360° VIEW | ||||||||
| 360° VIEW | 68 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt 360° View of 68 (better than 68% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and financial characteristics for the stock Kier are above average. The 360° View is based on consolidating four consolidated indicators, with all but one indicator above average for Kier. The consolidated Value Rank has an attractive rank of 81, which means that the share price of Kier is on the lower side compared with the typical size in indicators such as revenues, profits, and invested capital. This means the stock price is lower than for 81% of alternative stocks in the same industry. The consolidated Growth Rank has a good rank of 73, which means that the company experiences above-average growth momentum when looking at financial metrics such as revenue, profit, and invested capital growth, as well as stock returns. In addition, professional market sentiment is above average compared with other stock investment alternatives with a Sentiment Rank of 91. But the company’s financing is risky with a Safety rank of 9. This means 91% of comparable companies have a safer financing structure than Kier. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated 360° View of 68, Kier is better positioned than 68% of all alternative stock investment opportunities based on the Obermatt Method. As three out of four consolidated Obermatt Ranks exhibit excellent performance, such as good value (Value Rank of 81), above-average growth (Growth Rank of 73), and positive market sentiment in the professional investor community (Sentiment Rank of 91), it is a solid stock investment where the risk of paying too much for the shares is limited, and disappointments are less likely, unless information not publicly available. Only the company financing structure is on the riskier side (Safety Rank of 9), but that would also mean better returns for shareholders if things work out well. Good value is sometimes an indication that the company's future is challenging. If they have been growing above average and are still a good value, it may indicate that this will not continue. We recommend evaluating whether the future of Kier is as difficult as the low price of the stock, despite good growth and positive professional investor sentiment, suggests. Since the professional community is optimistic, you might have less to worry about, and the stock is just not sufficiently visible right now, which may indicate good timing. ...read more
Sentiment Strategy: Professional Market Sentiment for Kier very positive
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Sentiment Rank of 91 (better than 91% compared with alternatives) for 2024, overall professional sentiment and engagement for the stock Kier is very positive. The Sentiment Rank is based on consolidating four sentiment indicators, with all but one indicator above average for Kier. Analyst Opinions are at a rank of 71 (better than 71% of alternative investments), which means that, currently, stock research analysts tend to recommend a stock investment in the company. In addition, Analyst Opinions Change has a rank of 86, which means that stock research experts are changing their opinions for the better in recommending investing in the company. In other words, they are getting even more optimistic about investments in Kier. Finally, the Professional Investors rank is 91, which means that currently, professional investors hold more stock in this company than in 91% of alternative investment opportunities. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Sentiment Rank of 91 (more positive than 91% compared with investment alternatives), Kier has a reputation among professional investors that is significantly higher than that of its competitors. Pros tend to favor investing in this company. But there is also a signal for caution. Market Pulse has a rank of 47, which means that the current professional news and professional social networks tend to be negative when discussing this company (more negative news than for 53% of competitors). This could mean future risks and should make investors careful. Attention to negative news for Kier is worthwhile because they may be early warning signals. Without those, all other professional signals are encouraging, especially since analysts are getting more optimistic. ...read more
Value Strategy: Kier Stock Price Value at the top
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 81 (better than 81% compared with alternatives) for 2024, Kier shares are significantly less expensive than comparable stocks. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators that are all above average for Kier. Price-to-Sales is 84 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future sales is lower than for 84% of comparable companies, indicating a good value for Kier's revenue size. The same is valid for expected Price-to-Profits, more favorable than for 87% 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 52. Compared with other companies in the same industry, dividend yields of Kier are expected to be higher than for 60% of all competitors (a Dividend Yield rank of 60). ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 81, is a buy recommendation based on Kier'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 Kier based on its detailed value metrics.
Growth Strategy: Kier Growth Momentum good
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 73 (better than 73% compared with alternatives), Kier shows an above-average growth dynamic in its industry. Investors also speak of positive momentum. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with all but one indicator above average for Kier. Sales Growth has a rank of 73 which means that currently, professionals expect the company to grow more than 73% of its competitors. Both Profit Growth, with a rank of 68, and Stock Returns, with a rank of 99, are also above average. But Capital Growth only has a rank of 4, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow its invested capital less than 96% of its competitors. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 73, is a buy recommendation for growth and momentum investors. That may be a good sign if the company is already well positioned and doesn't require more investments at this time. They may focus on growing the top (revenues) and bottom (profits) lines, recently rewarded with above-average stock returns for shareholders. But it may also be a sign of danger as the company is falling back with capital investment activities concerning competition. This requires further analysis of corporate communications. ...read more
Safety Strategy: Kier Debt Financing Safety risky
| SAFETY METRICS | March 14, 2024 | |||||||
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| LEVERAGE | ||||||||
| LEVERAGE | 41 |
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| REFINANCING | ||||||||
| REFINANCING | 6 |
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| LIQUIDITY | ||||||||
| LIQUIDITY | 24 |
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| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | 9 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 9 (better than 9% compared with alternatives), the company Kier has much riskier financing practices than comparable other companies, which means that their overall debt burden is significantly above the industry average. This doesn't mean that the business of Kier 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 all three metrics below average for Kier. Liquidity is at 24, meaning that the company generates less profit to service its debt than 76% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is on the riskier side when it comes to debt service. Even worse, Leverage is at a rank of 41, meaning the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 59% of its competitors. Finally, Refinancing is at a rank of 6 which means that the portion of the debt about to be refinanced is above average. It has more debt in the refinancing stage than 94% of its competitors. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 9 (worse than 91% compared with alternatives), Kier has a financing structure that is significantly riskier than that of its competitors. This combination is rather dangerous in most situations. Only very promising companies with bright future outlooks and stellar reputations can operate with such risky financing.
Combined financial peformance: Kier Below-Average Financial Performance
| COMBINED PERFORMANCE | March 14, 2024 | |||||||
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| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 81 |
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| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 73 |
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| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 24 |
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| COMBINED | ||||||||
| COMBINED | 48 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 48 (worse than 52% compared with investment alternatives), Kier (Construction & Engineering, United Kingdom) shares have somewhat below-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Kier are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Value Rank of 81 (better than 81% of alternatives), show above-average growth (Growth Rank of 73) but are riskily financed (Safety Rank of 9), which means above-average debt burdens. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 48, is a hold recommendation based on Kier's financial characteristics. As the company Kier's key financial metrics exhibit excellent performance in two areas, such as good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 81) and above-average growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 73), it could be argued that the risk-taking in financing (Obermatt Safety Rank of only 9) indicates that the company is optimistic about the future and sees debt as an opportunity to boost returns. More debt means more shareholder returns if everything goes well. However, higher debt burdens are risky when interest rates rise or the business deteriorates in a crisis. If you believe the company's future is market-typical or even better, this could be an argument for a share purchase. ...read more
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