Access comprehensive financial analyses and make smarter investments - get the Manual of Investments on Amazon!

Why Don't More Analysts Think Ericsson (ERIC) Is a Buy?

Ericsson may be undervalued with mixed growth prospects, but the 6 analysts following the company give it an rating of underperform. Their target prices range from $9.2 to $11.4 per share, for an average of $10.45. At today's price of $13.04, Ericsson is trading 24.78% away from its average target price, suggesting there is an analyst belief that shares are overpriced for the stock.

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ), together with its subsidiaries, provides mobile connectivity solutions to communications service providers, enterprises, and the public sector in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, Oceania, and India. Based in Stockholm, Sweden, the Large-Cap Technology company has 87,521 full time employees. Ericsson has not offered a dividend over the last year.

Ericsson has a trailing twelve month P/E ratio of 16.1, compared to an average of 30.44 for the Technology sector. Considering its EPS guidance of $0.68, the company has a forward P/E ratio of 19.2.

On the other hand, the market is potentially undervaluing Ericsson in terms of its book value because its P/B ratio is 0.42. In comparison, the sector average P/B ratio is 4.19. The company's shares are currently -83.5% above their Graham number, which suggests that they are not trading at a fair value in terms of earnings and net assets.

2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Revenue (M) $232,390 $232,314 $271,546 $263,351 $247,880 $236,681
Gross Margins 40% 43% 42% 39% 44% 48%
Net Margins 8% 10% 7% -10% 0% 12%
Net Income (M) $17,623 $22,980 $19,112 -$26,104 $374 $28,714
Net Interest Expense (M) -$596 -$2,530 -$2,411 -$2,993 $1,724 -$332
Depreciation & Amort. (M) $7,978 $8,458 $10,142 $11,157 $10,020 $8,909
Diluted Shares (M) 3,334,151,735 3,334 3,334 3,344 3,348 3,371
Earnings Per Share $5.26 $6.81 $5.62 -$7.94 $0.01 $8.51
EPS Growth n/a 29.47% -17.47% -241.28% 100.13% 85000.0%
Free Cash Flow (M) $28,933 $39,065 $30,863 $7,177 $46,261 $32,954
Total Debt (M) $22,218 $22,241 $26,946 $29,218 $31,904 $29,165
Net Debt / EBITDA -0.6 -0.79 -0.31 0.65 -0.84 -0.31
Current Ratio 1.31 1.38 1.19 1.2 1.17 1.29
The above analysis is intended for educational purposes only and was performed on the basis of publicly available data. It is not to be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Any buy, sell, or other recommendations mentioned in the article are direct quotations of consensus recommendations from the analysts covering the stock, and do not represent the opinions of Market Inference or its writers. Past performance, accounting data, and inferences about market position and corporate valuation are not reliable indicators of future price movements. Market Inference does not provide financial advice. Investors should conduct their own review and analysis of any company of interest before making an investment decision.

IN FOCUS