Stock price when the opinion was issued
The stock has been volatile, as all growth stocks have been recently. We think merchant customers and the company can adapt well enough. However, the consumer spending impact of tariffs remains a variable. Consumer confidence has dropped, and if tariffs induce inflation then business may certainly be negatively impacted overall. Silver linings might be valuation (better of course with the decline) and sentiment (market sentiment is so bad currently any good news could amplify moves). It remains a high Beta stock. Down 11% YTD, it has actually held up better than many others.
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Growth company that hasn't been smashed, despite coming down from highs. Flirting with getting into the NASDAQ 100; if it goes down there, will be a lot more buying. Last quarter earnings were good, subscription revenue up, and executing well. But it's pricey.
Must-own name, but you have to buy it at the right level. Very whippy, use the technicals to buy.
Valuation is 61x forward PE with 25% growth, giving a PEG ratio of well over 2x. 200-week MA is trending lower, which is not a fantastic technical sign. Have to watch out for rivals such as AMZN and ETSY. Depends more on small-and mid-sized businesses, which can be affected more by any economic downturn.
Canada does not have nearly the same tech landscape that the US does, and SHOP has been one of Canada's largest tech successes. This provides support at a high level for the company to continue to succeed. Understanding its technology, it is more than just a flash in the pan and has a long tail to it. Ecommerce and Shopify's presence have a 'lindy effect' and this is essentially its staying power. Digital spending is here to stay, and brands need PoS, logistics, inventory management and other systems to manage online sails.
We like Shopify's strong presence across North America, its resiliency across business cycles, and vision from the management team. It is at a high valuation relative to most other companies, but we feel this is justified given its growing market share and technology supporting the company.
There are risks from certain competitors (AMZN, LSPD), but most of these risks fade away over time as investors and businesses realize the impressive technology stack that SHOP has in comparison. We believe it has created a competitive advantage for itself, and there are certain businesses that AMZN has avoided due to SHOP's significant presence in those businesses.
We continue to like the name as part of a Canadian tech success story.
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