WES share price in focus
Wesfarmers is a diversified Australian conglomerate headquartered in Perth. It’s essentially a listed investment company with outright ownership or significant stakes in companies across retail, chemical, fertiliser, industrial and safety brands and products.
Wesfarmers has a long history of buying businesses, re-investing in them to grow cash flow and assets, then selling them off for a higher price. A good example of this is Coles Group, which it bought in 2007 and spun out in 2018. However, by far (over 50%) of the company’s operating profit comes from Bunnings Warehouse, the #1 hardware and home improvement business in Australia (and the country’s most trusted brand in 2023 & 2024). Wesfarmers originally bought into Bunnings in 1987, buying the final 52% in 1994 for $594 million.
Other household names owned by Wesfarmers include Blackwoods, Kmart, Target, Officeworks, and Priceline Pharmacy. Wesfarmers has been a leading blue chip stock on the ASX for decades and is known for paying a consistent dividend.
FLT shares
Flight Centre is an Australian staple in the travel industry, but you may not know that it operates under multiple names across over 80 countries!
Flight Centre isn’t just limited to booking flights either. They offer services in both the retail and corporate sectors and across sub-sectors including tour operations, travel experiences and hotel management.
Unlike many of the online travel agencies, Flight Centre still has brick-and-mortar locations where customers can come in and have face-to-face consultations. This extra service, as well as the exclusive deals Flight Centre can get access to because of its reach, are what keep customers coming back.
WES & FLT share price valuation
One way to have a ‘fast read’ of where the WES share price is could be to study something like dividend yield over time. This can give us a sense of the stability of the company and whether they can consistently pay out a percentage of profits.
Remember, the dividend yield is basically the ‘cash flow’ to a shareholder, but it can fluctuate year-to-year or between payments. Currently, Wesfarmers Ltd shares have a dividend yield of around 2.66%, compared to its 5-year average of 3.36%. In other words, WES shares are trading lower than their historical average dividend yield. Be careful how you interpret this information though – it could mean that dividends have fallen, or that the share price is increasing, or both. In the case of WES, the annual report shows last year’s dividend was greater than the 3-year average, so the dividend has been growing.
Since FLT is more of a ‘growth’ company than an established blue chip, a price-sales ratio might be a more appropriate assessment. This ratio gives us an idea of how the company has historically been valued relative to its earnings, which can indicate if the company is over or undervalued today. The FLT share price currently trades at a price-sales ratio of 1.00x, which compares to its 5-year long-term average of 3.42x. So, FLT shares are trading lower than their historical average. Don’t forget, a simple multiple like this should only be the start of your research. The Rask websites offer free online investing courses, created by analysts explaining things like Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) and Dividend Discount Models (DDM). They even include free valuation spreadsheets! It’s a good idea to use multiple valuation methods to value a share like Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd.
