Yahoo Finance A Look At The Intrinsic Value Of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)
Key Insights
The projected fair value for Becton Dickinson is US$263 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity
Current share price of US$239 suggests Becton Dickinson is potentially trading close to its fair value
Our fair value estimate is 4.8% lower than Becton Dickinson's analyst price target of US$276
How far off is Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) from its intrinsic value? Using the most recent financial data, we'll take a look at whether the stock is fairly priced by projecting its future cash flows and then discounting them to today's value. We will take advantage of the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model for this purpose. Believe it or not, it's not too difficult to follow, as you'll see from our example!
Companies can be valued in a lot of ways, so we would point out that a DCF is not perfect for every situation. For those who are keen learners of equity analysis, the Simply Wall St analysis model here may be something of interest to you.
See our latest analysis for Becton Dickinson
The Method
We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. In the first stage we need to estimate the cash flows to the business over the next ten years. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.
Generally we assume that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar in the future, so we need to discount the sum of these future cash flows to arrive at a present value estimate:
10-year free cash flow (FCF) forecast
2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 | 2030 | 2031 | 2032 | |
Levered FCF ($, Millions) | US$3.28b | US$3.67b | US$3.70b | US$4.27b | US$4.58b | US$4.82b | US$5.02b | US$5.20b | US$5.36b | US$5.51b |
Growth Rate Estimate Source | Analyst x2 | Analyst x5 | Analyst x4 | Analyst x1 | Analyst x1 | Est @ 5.13% | Est @ 4.21% | Est @ 3.57% | Est @ 3.12% | Est @ 2.81% |
Present Value ($, Millions) Discounted @ 7.9% | US$3.0k | US$3.2k | US$2.9k | US$3.2k | US$3.1k | US$3.1k | US$2.9k | US$2.8k | US$2.7k | US$2.6k |
("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)
Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = US$30b
After calculating the present value of future cash flows in the initial 10-year period, we need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all future cash flows beyond the first stage. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a country's GDP growth. In this case we have used the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield (2.1%) to estimate future growth. In the same way as with the 10-year 'growth' period, we discount future cash flows to today's value, using a cost of equity of 7.9%.
Terminal Value (TV)= FCF2032 × (1 + g) ÷ (r – g) = US$5.5b× (1 + 2.1%) ÷ (7.9%– 2.1%) = US$97b
Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= US$97b÷ ( 1 + 7.9%)10= US$45b
The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is US$75b. In the final step we divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of US$239, the company appears about fair value at a 9.2% discount to where the stock price trades currently. The assumptions in any calculation have a big impact on the valuation, so it is better to view this as a rough estimate, not precise down to the last cent.
The Assumptions
The calculation above is very dependent on two assumptions. The first is the discount rate and the other is the cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Becton Dickinson as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 7.9%, which is based on a levered beta of 0.981. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.
SWOT Analysis for Becton Dickinson
Strength
Earnings growth over the past year exceeded the industry.
Debt is well covered by earnings.
Dividends are covered by earnings and cash flows.
Weakness
Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Medical Equipment market.
Opportunity
Annual earnings are forecast to grow for the next 3 years.
Current share price is below our estimate of fair value.
Threat
Debt is not well covered by operating cash flow.
Annual earnings are forecast to grow slower than the American market.
Looking Ahead:
Although the valuation of a company is important, it shouldn't be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Preferably you'd apply different cases and assumptions and see how they would impact the company's valuation. If a company grows at a different rate, or if its cost of equity or risk free rate changes sharply, the output can look very different. For Becton Dickinson, there are three relevant elements you should consider:
Risks: You should be aware of the 1 warning sign for Becton Dickinson we've uncovered before considering an investment in the company.
Future Earnings: How does BDX's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart.
Other High Quality Alternatives: Do you like a good all-rounder? Explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing!
PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the NYSE every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks just search here.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
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