Placing ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW), Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Quant Signals Under the Microscope

Source: howebusinessdaily.com

ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) has a Q.i. Value of 55.00000. The Q.i. Value ranks companies using four ratios. These ratios consist of EBITDA Yield, FCF Yield, Liquidity, and Earnings Yield. The purpose of the Q.i. Value is to help identify companies that are the most undervalued. Typically, the lower the value, the more undervalued the company tends to be.

Making money in the stock market can be challenging, but it is not impossible. Accomplished investors typically have a well-rounded understanding of how markets function. Many successful investors have learned to be patient, disciplined, and ready to jump on any opportunity that arises. Securing higher returns on investment dollars may take some extra time and effort for those who do not have a lengthy background in the stock market. Although there are many types of investments out there, investing in stocks has traditionally provided the highest potential for returns. To realize consistent returns, investors typically have to maintain a steadfast approach and be willing to adapt to changing market environments over time.

Checking in on some valuation rankings, ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) has a Value Composite score of 80. Developed by James O’Shaughnessy, the VC score uses five valuation ratios. These ratios are price to earnings, price to cash flow, EBITDA to EV, price to book value, and price to sales. The VC is displayed as a number between 1 and 100. In general, a company with a score closer to 0 would be seen as undervalued, and a score closer to 100 would indicate an overvalued company. Adding a sixth ratio, shareholder yield, we can view the Value Composite 2 score which is currently sitting at 82.

Watching some historical volatility numbers on shares of ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW), we can see that the 12 month volatility is presently 38.101300. The 6 month volatility is 31.153200, and the 3 month is spotted at 30.463800. Following volatility data can help measure how much the stock price has fluctuated over the specified time period. Although past volatility action may help project future stock volatility, it may also be vastly different when taking into account other factors that may be driving price action during the measured time period.

ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) has a current ERP5 Rank of 14508. The ERP5 Rank may assist investors with spotting companies that are undervalued. This ranking uses four ratios. These ratios are Earnings Yield, ROIC, Price to Book, and 5 year average ROIC. When looking at the ERP5 ranking, it is generally considered the lower the value, the better.

We can now take a quick look at some historical stock price index data. ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) presently has a 10 month price index of 1.62315. The price index is calculated by dividing the current share price by the share price ten months ago. A ratio over one indicates an increase in share price over the period. A ratio lower than one shows that the price has decreased over that time period. Looking at some alternate time periods, the 12 month price index is 1.37940, the 24 month is 2.38200, and the 36 month is 3.63224. Narrowing in a bit closer, the 5 month price index is 1.10440, the 3 month is 0.99970, and the 1 month is currently 0.93258.

Return on Assets

There are many different tools to determine whether a company is profitable or not. One of the most popular ratios is the “Return on Assets” (aka ROA). This score indicates how profitable a company is relative to its total assets. The Return on Assets for ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) is 0.000805. This number is calculated by dividing net income after tax by the company’s total assets. A company that manages their assets well will have a higher return, while a company that manages their assets poorly will have a lower return.

Return on Invested Capital (ROIC), ROIC Quality, ROIC 5 Year Average

The Return on Invested Capital (aka ROIC) for ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) is -0.015148. The Return on Invested Capital is a ratio that determines whether a company is profitable or not. It tells investors how well a company is turning their capital into profits. The ROIC is calculated by dividing the net operating profit (or EBIT) by the employed capital. The employed capital is calculated by subrating current liabilities from total assets. Similarly, the Return on Invested Capital Quality ratio is a tool in evaluating the quality of a company’s ROIC over the course of five years. The ROIC Quality of ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) is 0.306066. This is calculated by dividing the five year average ROIC by the Standard Deviation of the 5 year ROIC. The ROIC 5 year average is calculated using the five year average EBIT, five year average (net working capital and net fixed assets). The ROIC 5 year average of ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) is -0.140710.

FCF Yield 5yr Avg

The FCF Yield 5yr Average is calculated by taking the five year average free cash flow of a company, and dividing it by the current enterprise value. Enterprise Value is calculated by taking the market capitalization plus debt, minority interest and preferred shares, minus total cash and cash equivalents. The average FCF of a company is determined by looking at the cash generated by operations of the company. The Free Cash Flow Yield 5 Year Average of ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) is 0.003484.

Gross Margin score

Investors may be interested in viewing the Gross Margin score on shares of ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW). The name currently has a score of 8.00000. This score is derived from the Gross Margin (Marx) stability and growth over the previous eight years. The Gross Margin score lands on a scale from 1 to 100 where a score of 1 would be considered positive, and a score of 100 would be seen as negative.

Volatility comes with the territory when trading stocks. Individual stock prices can fluctuate dramatically, and returns can be largely varied. Because no stock is guaranteed to produce returns, there is a possibility that any stock could potentially lose value. Even though stock prices can shift from day to day, long-term investors are usually more concerned about price movements over an expanded period of time. Investors looking to minimize volatility risk may look to hold a larger number of diversified stocks in the portfolio. Even though market dips may have an impact on the entire portfolio, it is important to remember that it is just a normal part of investing in the stock market.

The Q.i. Value ranks companies using four ratios. These ratios consist of EBITDA Yield, FCF Yield, Liquidity, and Earnings Yield. The purpose of the Q.i. Value is to help identify companies that are the most undervalued. Typically, the lower the value, the more undervalued the company tends to be. Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) currently has a Q.i. Value of 39.00000.

When dealing with the equity markets, investors are often tasked with trying to find stocks that are bound for glory. Every investor dreams of finding those stocks that were overlooked but are poised to pick up momentum. New investors are often instructed to set goals before starting to invest. Creating attainable, realistic goals can be a good starting point before digging into the investment trenches. After setting up goals considering financial status, objectives, timeframes and risk appetite, the next step may involve creating an actionable plan. Once the plan is in place, it may be extremely important to routinely monitor the performance of the portfolio. There are often many well crafted investment plans that for whatever reason don’t seem to be working out properly. Being able to evaluate and adjust the plan based on market activity may end up being the difference between a winning or losing portfolio. Being able to adapt to the fast paced and often times tumultuous market landscape can be a gigantic benefit for long-term portfolio health.

We can now take a quick look at some historical stock price index data. Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) presently has a 10 month price index of 1.37183. The price index is calculated by dividing the current share price by the share price ten months ago. A ratio over one indicates an increase in share price over the period. A ratio lower than one shows that the price has decreased over that time period.

Looking at some alternate time periods, the 12 month price index is 1.31251, the 24 month is 1.58386, and the 36 month is 1.90236. Narrowing in a bit closer, the 5 month price index is 1.14194, the 3 month is 1.08683, and the 1 month is currently 0.99229.

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) has a current ERP5 Rank of 8113. The ERP5 Rank may assist investors with spotting companies that are undervalued. This ranking uses four ratios. These ratios are Earnings Yield, ROIC, Price to Book, and 5 year average ROIC. When looking at the ERP5 ranking, it is generally considered the lower the value, the better.

Checking in on some valuation rankings, Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) has a Value Composite score of 57. Developed by James O’Shaughnessy, the VC score uses five valuation ratios. These ratios are price to earnings, price to cash flow, EBITDA to EV, price to book value, and price to sales. The VC is displayed as a number between 1 and 100. In general, a company with a score closer to 0 would be seen as undervalued, and a score closer to 100 would indicate an overvalued company. Adding a sixth ratio, shareholder yield, we can view the Value Composite 2 score which is currently sitting at 48.

Watching some historical volatility numbers on shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM), we can see that the 12 month volatility is presently 14.247000. The 6 month volatility is 14.214400, and the 3 month is spotted at 15.825600. Following volatility data can help measure how much the stock price has fluctuated over the specified time period. Although past volatility action may help project future stock volatility, it may also be vastly different when taking into account other factors that may be driving price action during the measured time period.

Current Ratio

The Current Ratio of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) is 1.70. The Current Ratio is used by investors to determine whether a company can pay short term and long term debts. The current ratio looks at all the liquid and non-liquid assets compared to the company’s total current liabilities. A high current ratio indicates that the company might have trouble managing their working capital. A low current ratio (when the current liabilities are higher than the current assets) indicates that the company may have trouble paying their short term obligations.

Gross Margin Score

The Gross Margin Score is calculated by looking at the Gross Margin and the overall stability of the company over the course of 8 years. The score is a number between one and one hundred (1 being best and 100 being the worst). The Gross Margin Score of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) is 7.00000. The more stable the company, the lower the score. If a company is less stable over the course of time, they will have a higher score.

M-Score (Beneish)

The M-Score, conceived by accounting professor Messod Beneish, is a model for detecting whether a company has manipulated their earnings numbers or not. Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) has an M-Score of -2.853141. The M-Score is based on 8 different variables: Days’ sales in receivables index, Gross Margin Index, Asset Quality Index, Sales Growth Index, Depreciation Index, Sales, General and Administrative expenses Index, Leverage Index and Total Accruals to Total Assets. A score higher than -1.78 is an indicator that the company might be manipulating their numbers.

Piotroski F-Score

The Piotroski F-Score is a scoring system between 1-9 that determines a firm’s financial strength. The score helps determine if a company’s stock is valuable or not. The Piotroski F-Score of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) is 5. A score of nine indicates a high value stock, while a score of one indicates a low value stock. The score is calculated by the return on assets (ROA), Cash flow return on assets (CFROA), change in return of assets, and quality of earnings. It is also calculated by a change in gearing or leverage, liquidity, and change in shares in issue. The score is also determined by change in gross margin and change in asset turnover.

Investors are constantly trying to make smarter decisions when it comes to dealing with the stock market. There are so many choices out there that it may become completely overwhelming at first. Starting with a baseline approach can help ease the burden of too much information. Developing the proper investment knowledge may take a lot of time and effort. Many investors may find out the hard way that shortcuts are not the answer to achieving long-term success in the stock market. Many people may occasionally get lucky and think they can do no wrong. Over time, this type of investor may see profits start to shrink and losses start to pile up. Many investors are bombarded with hot investment tips. It can be very tempting to take advice from someone who has actually made money in the markets previously. However, the old adage remains the same; past results may not indicate future results. Thinking that something that has worked in the past will no doubt work in the future can be a recipe for portfolio disaster. Individual investors who do their own thorough research should be much better positioned to make the proper decisions when the time comes.