Henry Schein, Inc. (NASDAQ:HSIC), is not the largest company out there, but it saw a decent share price growth of 11% on the NASDAQGS over the last few months. While good news for shareholders, the company has traded much higher in the past year. With many analysts covering the mid-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? Let's examine Henry Schein's valuation and outlook in more detail to determine if there's still a bargain opportunity.

What's The Opportunity In Henry Schein?

The share price seems sensible at the moment according to our price multiple model, where we compare the company's price-to-earnings ratio to the industry average. We've used the price-to-earnings ratio in this instance because there's not enough visibility to forecast its cash flows. The stock's ratio of 25.56x is currently trading slightly above its industry peers' ratio of 24.66x, which means if you buy Henry Schein today, you'd be paying a relatively sensible price for it. And if you believe that Henry Schein should be trading at this level in the long run, then there should only be a fairly immaterial downside vs other industry peers. Furthermore, Henry Schein'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.

Can we expect growth from Henry Schein?

Future outlook is an important aspect when you're looking at buying a stock, especially if you are an investor looking for growth in your portfolio. Buying a great company with a robust outlook at a cheap price is always a good investment, so let's also take a look at the company's future expectations. Henry Schein's earnings over the next few years are expected to increase by 75%, indicating a highly optimistic future ahead. This should lead to more 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 HSIC'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 HSIC? Will you have enough conviction to buy should the price fluctuate below the industry PE ratio?

Are you a potential investor? If you've been keeping an eye on HSIC, now may not be the most advantageous time to buy, given it is trading around industry price multiples. However, the optimistic forecast is encouraging for HSIC, which means it's worth diving deeper into other factors such as the strength of its balance sheet, in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

If you want to dive deeper into Henry Schein, you'd also look into what risks it is currently facing. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 2 warning signs with Henry Schein, and understanding these should be part of your investment process.

If you are no longer interested in Henry Schein, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

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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.