Easterly Government Properties Stock Shows Every Sign Of Being Fairly Valued
- By GF Value
The stock of Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA, 30-year Financials) is estimated to be fairly valued, according to GuruFocus Value calculation. GuruFocus Value is GuruFocus' estimate of the fair value at which the stock should be traded. It is calculated based on the historical multiples that the stock has traded at, the past business growth and analyst estimates of future business performance. If the price of a stock is significantly above the GF Value Line, it is overvalued and its future return is likely to be poor. On the other hand, if it is significantly below the GF Value Line, its future return will likely be higher. At its current price of $21.14 per share and the market cap of $1.8 billion, Easterly Government Properties stock appears to be fairly valued. GF Value for Easterly Government Properties is shown in the chart below.
Because Easterly Government Properties is fairly valued, the long-term return of its stock is likely to be close to the rate of its business growth.
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It is always important to check the financial strength of a company before buying its stock. Investing in companies with poor financial strength have a higher risk of permanent loss. Looking at the cash-to-debt ratio and interest coverage is a great way to understand the financial strength of a company. Easterly Government Properties has a cash-to-debt ratio of 0.01, which is worse than 88% of the companies in REITs industry. The overall financial strength of Easterly Government Properties is 3 out of 10, which indicates that the financial strength of Easterly Government Properties is poor. This is the debt and cash of Easterly Government Properties over the past years:
It poses less risk to invest in profitable companies, especially those that have demonstrated consistent profitability over the long term. A company with high profit margins is also typically a safer investment than one with low profit margins. Easterly Government Properties has been profitable 6 over the past 10 years. Over the past twelve months, the company had a revenue of $251.9 million and earnings of $0.21 a share. Its operating margin is 24.31%, which ranks worse than 73% of the companies in REITs industry. Overall, GuruFocus ranks the profitability of Easterly Government Properties at 5 out of 10, which indicates fair profitability. This is the revenue and net income of Easterly Government Properties over the past years:
Growth is probably the most important factor in the valuation of a company. GuruFocus research has found that growth is closely correlated with the long term stock performance of a company. A faster growing company creates more value for shareholders, especially if the growth is profitable. The 3-year average annual revenue growth of Easterly Government Properties is -0.4%, which ranks in the middle range of the companies in REITs industry. The 3-year average EBITDA growth rate is -0.9%, which ranks in the middle range of the companies in REITs industry.
Another way to look at the profitability of a company is to compare its return on invested capital and the weighted cost of capital. Return on invested capital (ROIC) measures how well a company generates cash flow relative to the capital it has invested in its business. The weighted average cost of capital (WACC) is the rate that a company is expected to pay on average to all its security holders to finance its assets. We want to have the return on invested capital higher than the weighted cost of capital. For the past 12 months, Easterly Government Properties's return on invested capital is 2.61, and its cost of capital is 4.10. The historical ROIC vs WACC comparison of Easterly Government Properties is shown below:
Overall, The stock of Easterly Government Properties (NYSE:DEA, 30-year Financials) gives every indication of being fairly valued. The company's financial condition is poor and its profitability is fair. Its growth ranks in the middle range of the companies in REITs industry. To learn more about Easterly Government Properties stock, you can check out its 30-year Financials here.
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This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
