Let's talk about the popular Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. (TSE:ATD). The company's shares saw a double-digit share price rise of over 10% in the past couple of months on the TSX. With many analysts covering the large-cap stock, we may expect any price-sensitive announcements have already been factored into the stock’s share price. However, could the stock still be trading at a relatively cheap price? Today I will analyse the most recent data on Alimentation Couche-Tard’s outlook and valuation to see if the opportunity still exists.

See our latest analysis for Alimentation Couche-Tard

What Is Alimentation Couche-Tard Worth?

The share price seems sensible at the moment according to my price multiple model, where I compare the company's price-to-earnings ratio to the industry average. In this instance, I’ve used the price-to-earnings (PE) ratio given that there is not enough information to reliably forecast the stock’s cash flows. I find that Alimentation Couche-Tard’s ratio of 17.01x is trading slightly above its industry peers’ ratio of 13.63x, which means if you buy Alimentation Couche-Tard today, you’d be paying a relatively reasonable price for it. And if you believe Alimentation Couche-Tard should be trading in this range, then there isn’t really any room for the share price grow beyond the levels of other industry peers over the long-term. Furthermore, Alimentation Couche-Tard’s share price also seems relatively stable compared to the rest of the market, as indicated by its low beta. This may mean it is less likely for the stock to fall lower from natural market volatility, which suggests less opportunities to buy moving forward.

What kind of growth will Alimentation Couche-Tard generate?

Investors looking for growth in their portfolio may want to consider the prospects of a company before buying its shares. Although value investors would argue that it’s the intrinsic value relative to the price that matter the most, a more compelling investment thesis would be high growth potential at a cheap price. Alimentation Couche-Tard's earnings growth are expected to be in the teens in the upcoming years, indicating a solid future ahead. This should lead to robust cash flows, feeding into a higher share value.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? It seems like the market has already priced in ATD’s positive outlook, with shares trading around industry price multiples. However, there are also other important factors which we haven’t considered today, such as the track record of its management team. Have these factors changed since the last time you looked at ATD? Will you have enough conviction to buy should the price fluctuate below the industry PE ratio?