You probably wouldn't have a hard time coming up with the names of ridiculously overvalued stocks on the market right now. Just type "short squeeze" into a search engine and look at the most recent news headlines if you can't think of any.
Naming stocks that are bargains will likely be a more challenging task, though, with the market near all-time highs. However, there are still a few stocks available at discounts. The list isn't limited only to small, unprofitable stocks. The most wildly undervalued large-cap stock on the market is profitable. Which stock is it? None other than two-and-a-half-month-old Viatris (VTRS -0.18%).
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Irrefutably dirt cheap
Viatris was formed on Nov. 16, 2020, by the merger of Mylan with Pfizer's Upjohn unit. The transaction created a global healthcare company with a market cap of close to $20 billion.
There's a really good case to be made that Viatris' market cap is well below where it should be. The healthcare stock trades at only 4.4 times expected earnings. Only a handful of other large-cap stocks currently trade at forward earnings multiples below five. None of them claims a lower valuation based on this metric than Viatris.
Of course, earnings can sometimes be deceptive because of one-time adjustments and other accounting items. Sometimes sales-based valuation metrics can be more useful. Is Viatris' valuation less attractive using other metrics? Nope. Its price-to-sales multiple is only 0.77. That's even lower than another inexpensive pharmaceutical stock, Teva Pharmaceutical, which trades at 0.82 times sales.
No matter how you look at it, Viatris is definitely dirt cheap. To understand why we have to examine the company's business.
A solid, if not spectacular, business
Investors knew Viatris was inheriting several products that have seen better days. Sales continue to decline for Lipitor, Lyrica, Norvasc, EpiPen, and other products in the company's lineup. Viatris doesn't anticipate delivering meaningful revenue growth for several years. This lack of growth has caused investors to view Viatris as a lackluster stock.
However, it's important to note that Viatris doesn't expect significant overall revenue declines over the next few years. Actually, the company anticipates stable revenue for the next four years. After that, Viatris thinks it will transition into steady revenue growth as its launches new products.
The company already claims some products for which sales are growing. Its new generic version of Biogen's blockbuster multiple sclerosis drug Tecfidera is one of them. Older drugs such as Viagra and Zoloft still enjoy strong sales momentum. Viatris' biosimilars portfolio also should continue to perform well.
While it will be a few years before revenue growth kicks in, it's a different story for earnings growth. Viatris expects to deliver earnings growth pretty much right out of the gate as it achieves synergies from the merger of Mylan and Upjohn.
Overall, Viatris appears to be a solid business. The company has over 1,400 approved molecules, including brand drugs, generic drugs, over-the-counter drugs, biosimilars, and active pharmaceutical ingredients. It has more than 60,000 customers across over 165 countries and territories. The market doesn't seem to recognize the real underlying value that Viatris offers.
Don't forget the (coming) dividend
Some investors might not have Viatris on their radar screens yet because it doesn't currently pay a dividend. That will soon change. Viatris intends to declare its first dividend after its first full quarter of operations.
Expect the company's dividend to be one of the juiciest among its peers. Viatris plans to use at least 25% of its cash flow to fund the dividend program. That should translate to a dividend yield in the ballpark of 5%.
Maybe Viatris is a kind of boring stock, but boring is exactly what income-seeking investors want. My view is that Viatris is a great dividend stock that's simply too cheap to ignore.
