November 23, 2023
Top 10 Stock SJP Sell 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: SJP – Top 10 Stock in Employee Satisfaction Leaders in Europe


sjp.co.uk


SJP is listed as a top 10 stock on November 23, 2023 in the market index Employee Focus EU because of its high performance in at least one of the Obermatt investment strategies. Only one consolidated Obermatt Rank is above-average. The company is safely financed, but all other facts speak against a stock purchase, especially the low market sentiment by professional investors. Based on the Obermatt 360° View of 16 (16% performer), Obermatt issues an overall sell recommendation for SJP on November 23, 2023.


Snapshot: Obermatt Ranks


Country United Kingdom
Industry Asset Management & Custody
Index FTSE All Shares, FTSE 100, FTSE 350, Employee Focus EU, Employee Health EU, Sound Pay Europe
Size class XX-Large
Latest Research


Top 10 Stocks ≠ most popular stocks

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 SJP Sell

360 METRICS November 23, 2023
VALUE
VALUE
GROWTH
GROWTH
SAFETY
SAFETY
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT
360° VIEW
360° VIEW

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt 360° View of 16 (better than 16% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and financial characteristics for the stock SJP are critical, mostly below average. The 360° View is based on consolidating four consolidated indicators, with three out of four metrics below average for SJP. The only rank that is above average is the consolidated Safety Rank at 100, which means that the company has a financing structure that is safer than those of 100% comparable companies when looking at the amount of its debt, its refinancing requirements, and its ability to service debt. But the Value, Growth and Sentiment Ranks are all below average. The consolidated Value Rank has a less desirable rank of 43, which means that the share price of SJP is on the high side compared with typical size in indicators such as revenues, profits, and invested capital. The consolidated Growth Rank also has a low rank of 1, which implies that the company exhibits below-average growth momentum when looking at financial metrics such as revenue, profit, and invested capital growth as well as stock returns. Finally, the consolidated Sentiment Rank is also low at a rank of 6, which means that professional investors are more pessimistic about the stock than for 94% of alternative investment opportunities. While Safety is strong, it’s not the most critical indicator, so we suggest proceeding with caution if you are considering this stock. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated 360° View of 16, SJP is worse than 84% of all alternative stock investment opportunities based on the Obermatt Method. This means that SJP shares are on the riskier side for investors. As only the financing structure, namely the Safety Rank, is on the safer side and all other consolidated Obermatt Ranks are below-average, this is a riskier stock investment proposition. This is especially the case, since professional investor sentiment, the consolidated Obermatt Sentiment Rank, is also low at 6. The negative market view on SJP may be the high stock price (low value) or the low level of growth. This is a problem. As the Safety Rank is the least significant of the four consolidated Obermatt Ranks, we cannot identify enough positive facts that are visible today to make a case for this stock investment. The company may have a strong future which would justify the high stock price, but this is not visible from investor behavior today. As market sentiment is critical, you should be careful with paying more than market-average for this stock, and conduct further research into the company's future growth potential. Prudent investors may only want to invest a smaller portion of their wealth in such situations. Young investors can carry more risk but should still thrive for sufficient diversification. ...read more




Sentiment Strategy: Professional Market Sentiment for SJP negative

SENTIMENT METRICS November 23, 2023
ANALYST OPINION
ANALYST OPINION
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Sentiment Rank of 6 (better than 6% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and engagement for the stock SJP is critical, mostly below average. The Sentiment Rank is based on consolidating four sentiment indicators, with half of the metrics below and half above average for SJP. Analyst Opinions are at a rank of 44 (worse than 56% of alternative investments), which means that currently, stock research analysts tend to warn against investing in the stock of the company. Worse, Analyst Opinions Change has a rank of 19 which means that stock research experts are getting even more pessimistic. It doesn't end with the analysts. Market Pulse is also low with a rank of 22, which means that the current professional news and professional social networks are on the negative side when discussing this company (more negative news than for 78% of competitors). No wonder, the Professional Investors rank is only 34, which means that professional investors hold less stock in this company than in 66% of alternative investment opportunities. Pros tend to stay away from SJP, which may be due to a small company size but just as likely because of its relatively low Sentiment Rank. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Sentiment Rank of 6 (less encouraging than 94% compared with investment alternatives), SJP has a reputation among professional investors that is far below that of its competitors. Investors should be careful with this stock right now. Further research is required if an investment is desired, because the facts found in the professional community are all negative. ...read more



Value Strategy: SJP Stock Price Value below-average critical

VALUE METRICS November 23, 2023
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 43 (worse than 57% compared with alternatives), SJP 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 SJP. Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price-earnings, P/E) is 62 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is lower than for 62% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning SJP'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 20, which means that the stock price is lower as regards to invested capital than for 20% of comparable investments. On the other hand, Price-to-Sales is less favorable than 78% of alternatives (only 22% of peers have an even less favorable ratio). The same is valid for dividend yield, which is lower than 26% of comparable companies, making the stock more expensive as regards to the company's expected dividend payouts. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 43, is a hold recommendation based on SJP'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 in respect to expected revenues, it means that 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 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 pay it out to shareholders, thus sealing the company's fate early. Any investment optimism should only be a buy trigger once thorough research is completed. ...read more



Growth Strategy: SJP Growth Momentum negative

GROWTH METRICS November 23, 2023
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 1 (better than 1% compared with alternatives), SJP 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 SJP. Sales Growth has a rank of 12, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow less than 88% of its competitors. The same is valid for Profit Growth, with a rank of 34, and Capital Growth with 19. In addition, Stock Returns have a below market rank of 3, which means that the stock returns have recently been below 97% of alternative investments. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 1, 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. ...read more



Safety Strategy: SJP Debt Financing Safety very solid

SAFETY METRICS November 23, 2023
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE
REFINANCING
REFINANCING
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 100 (better than 100% compared with alternatives) for 2023, the company SJP has safe financing practices, which means that their overall debt burden is low. This doesn't mean that the business of SJP 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 SJP. Refinancing is at 100, meaning the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is below average. It has less debt in the refinancing stage than 100% of its competitors. Liquidity is also good at 100, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 100% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is safer when it comes to debt service. However, Leverage is rather large at 41, which means the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 59% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 100 (better than 100% compared with alternatives), SJP has a financing structure that is significantly 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 SJP 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. ...read more



Combined financial peformance: SJP Below-Average Financial Performance

COMBINED PERFORMANCE November 23, 2023
VALUE
VALUE
GROWTH
GROWTH
SAFETY
SAFETY
COMBINED
COMBINED

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 49 (worse than 51% compared with investment alternatives), SJP (Asset Management & Custody, United Kingdom) shares have somewhat below-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of SJP are low in value (priced high) with a consolidated Value Rank of 43 (worse than 57% of alternatives) and show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 1) but are safely financed (Safety Rank of 100), which means low debt burdens. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 49, is a hold recommendation based on SJP's financial characteristics. As the company SJP's critical financial metrics exhibit below-average performance, such as low value (Obermatt Value Rank of 43) and low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 1), 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 100) 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. ...read more

Obermatt Portfolio Performance
We’re so convinced about our research, that we buy our stock tips.
See the performance of the Obermatt portfolio.