It's no secret that investors would like to see their investments continually increase in value over time.
Isn't that the whole point of investing?
But it doesn't always work like that. Long-term investors need to understand that it's not always smooth sailing when it comes to investing in stocks and that there are going to be good and bad times.
Some investors may say it is a bad time right now, but there is a silver lining to the recent market downturn – many stocks are now cheaper than they were only a few months or even weeks ago.
Here is a small selection of stocks that have recently been discounted by the market:
1. Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) – The company's most recent update presented at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) confirmed it was on track to return to profit growth with a forecast for a record underlying profit before tax of between $380 million to $395 million for the 2016 financial year, a 4% to 8% increase on FY15.
Although the domestic market is still expected to be subdued in the short term, international markets are still performing strongly and investors need to remember the company is still sitting on huge pile of cash that it can use for expansion and acquisitions. The share price has retreated from above $40 and is now trading at around $36.50. At a price-to-earnings ratio of less than 14 and offering a dividend yield of at least 4.3%, investors could do far worse than consider Flight Centre.
2. M2 Group Ltd (ASX: MTU) – M2 Group's share price increased sharply following the announcement of the proposed merger between itself and fellow telco Vocus Communications Limited (ASX: VOC). The company confirmed at its recent AGM that it expects FY16 revenue growth of between 24%-26% and earnings growth of 30%-35%. Based on these figures, M2 Group is currently trading at around 15x FY16 earnings and this is not taking into account the possible benefits of the Vocus merger. In addition to this, investors will receive a fully franked dividend yield of around 3.7%.
3. Cover-More Group Ltd (ASX: CVO) – Cover-More's share price has fallen more than 20% since hitting $2.55 per share in August. On Friday, the share price briefly dipped below $2.00 per share following a softer-than-expected market update provided at the company's AGM.
The lower AUD is affecting overseas claim costs and policy sales in some parts of Asia. Medical assistance sales were also lower in the first quarter as a result of contract losses. Despite these negatives, Cover-More is still expected to deliver earnings growth for the full year and has a number of strategic initiatives to drive earnings growth in the medium term. The current weakness in the share price has seen the company trade on a forward price-to-earnings ratio of around 18 and offering a forecast dividend yield of around 5%.
