AmerisourceBergen Corp. (NYSE:ABC)

Price to Earnings (P/E) Ratio Trend

The P/E ratio shows notable fluctuations throughout the period. Initially, the ratio declines from 20.54 to a low of 11.36 in the third quarter of 2018, followed by a general upward trend reaching a peak of 28.18 at the end of 2019. This is succeeded by a steep decrease in early 2020, with values around 11 to 13.5. After a period of missing data, the ratio stabilizes between 16.7 and 22.9 during 2021 to mid-2023, indicating some recovery and relative stability in earnings valuation.

Price to Operating Profit (P/OP) Ratio Trend

There is an initial decrease in the P/OP ratio from 18.63 at the end of 2017 to 11.71 by year-end 2018. Following this, the ratio experiences an increase to approximately 20.39 in late 2019. A decline occurs again in early 2020, with missing data hindering continuous tracking. From 2021 onwards, P/OP ratios remain relatively lower compared to earlier peaks, fluctuating mostly between 10.9 and 16.7, suggesting changes in the operating profit relative to share price valuation moderate over time.

Price to Sales (P/S) Ratio Trend

The P/S ratio maintains a much steadier profile compared to other valuation ratios. It oscillates between 0.09 and 0.15 with a slight upward drift observable from mid-2020 onward. This indicates that the market's valuation of sales has modestly increased over time, reflecting a potentially improving top-line or stable revenue expectations relative to share price.

Price to Book Value (P/BV) Ratio Observations

The P/BV ratio presents an unusual pattern in the later data series. Initial values range between approximately 5.5 and 7.0 through the first half of 2019 and early 2020. However, the reported values from late 2020 onward show extreme volatility and outlier figures, including large jumps to several hundred and then back to lower values. This likely indicates either data irregularities or extraordinary events impacting the book value or market price. The volatility suggests that the conventional interpretation of P/BV during this later period is limited without further context.

Overall Insights

Valuation multiples demonstrate variability with clear impacts likely related to market conditions and company performance shifts around early 2020, coinciding with global economic disruptions. Price to earnings and operating profit multiples show strong cyclical patterns with peaks pre-2020 followed by sharp dips and a moderate rebound post-2020. Price to sales remains relatively stable, reflecting less sensitivity to earnings volatility. The price to book value ratio data in later periods requires caution due to abnormal spikes and inconsistencies, which reduce its reliability as a valuation measure during that time frame.

The analysis of the financial performance over the observed periods reveals notable trends in the share price, earnings per share (EPS), and price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio.

Share Price (US$)

The share price exhibited considerable volatility while maintaining an overall upward trajectory. Starting at $91.54 at the end of 2017, the price experienced a gradual decline through early 2019, reaching lows around $77.06 in March 2019. Subsequently, an ascending trend emerged, with prices rising steadily, surpassing $100 by mid-2020 and continuing strong growth through 2021 and 2022, reaching a peak of approximately $191.43 in June 2023. Short-term fluctuations were observed, but the dominant pattern was a robust increase in market valuation over the longer term.

Earnings Per Share (EPS, US$)

EPS displayed substantial fluctuations, with periods of both positive growth and significant decline. Initially, EPS ranged roughly between $3.15 and $7.83 up to late 2019. A notable anomaly occurred around mid-2020 to early 2021 when EPS turned sharply negative, reaching lows near -$18.24. This decline indicates either extraordinary losses or accounting adjustments in that period. Following this downturn, EPS reverted to positive territory from late 2021 onward, stabilizing in a range between approximately $7.4 and $8.89. This recovery suggests a return to operational profitability after the earlier disruption.

Price-to-Earnings (P/E) Ratio

The P/E ratio showed considerable variability linked closely to EPS performance changes. Initially fluctuating between roughly 11 and 28 from 2017 through early 2020, the ratio reflects market valuation relative to earnings. Data is incomplete for the period coinciding with negative EPS, indicating challenges in calculating this metric due to losses. Post-recovery, from late 2021 through 2023, the P/E ratio stabilized between approximately 15.64 and 22.91, suggesting investor valuation aligned more consistently with earnings. This range reflects moderate market optimism and confidence in the company’s earnings stability following the prior earnings volatility.

In summary, the company exhibited a resilient share price growth trend despite significant EPS volatility during 2020 to early 2021, which impacted the P/E ratio calculation. The subsequent normalization of EPS and P/E ratio corresponds with sustained share price appreciation, indicating restored investor confidence and financial performance stability in recent periods.

The analysis of the quarterly financial data reveals several notable trends and fluctuations in the key financial indicators over the examined periods.

Share Price

The share price demonstrated moderate volatility initially, with values ranging from approximately $77.06 to $92.18 between the first quarter of 2018 and the end of 2019. From early 2020 onwards, there was a pronounced upward trend, notably from a share price of $88.74 at the start of 2020 to a peak around $191.43 by mid-2023. This growth indicates strong market confidence or improved expectations about the company’s prospects. Some minor short-term fluctuations occurred, but the overall momentum was strongly positive in the later periods.

Operating Profit per Share

The operating profit per share exhibited considerable variability across the quarters. Initially, the values fluctuated in a relatively stable band between roughly $4.26 and $7.12 through 2017 and 2018. In 2020, there was a significant downturn, with operating profit per share dropping sharply to negative values (as low as -$25.14 and around -$23.70), indicating a period of substantial operational challenges or extraordinary expenses. However, from late 2020 and into 2021, the measure showed a strong recovery, rising steadily to levels surpassing $11 per share and maintaining this improved performance through the subsequent quarters up to mid-2023.

Price to Operating Profit Ratio (P/OP)

The P/OP ratio inversely reflected some of the trends seen in operating profit per share. Earlier periods showed a ratio fluctuating mostly between about 11.7 and 21.65, implying a variation in the market’s valuation relative to operating profit. Notably, during the quarters when operating profit per share turned sharply negative (2020), the ratio data was missing, likely due to the inapplicability or distortion in calculation during losses. After this disruption, the P/OP ratio stabilized in the range approximately 10.93 to 16.69 through mid-2023, indicating a normalized relationship between market price and operational earnings, albeit at slightly higher valuation multiples compared to some earlier quarters.

Overall, the data reflects a company that underwent a significant operational setback around 2020, followed by a recovery phase marked by improved profitability and growing market valuation. The expanding share price trend and recovery in operating profitability suggest a strengthening business performance and increased investor confidence during the latter part of the period under review.

The financial data reveals several trends regarding the company's share price, sales per share, and price-to-sales (P/S) ratio over multiple quarters from the end of 2017 through the middle of 2023.

Share Price

The share price shows moderate fluctuations initially, with values ranging mostly between $77 and $92 from the end of 2017 until early 2020. Beginning in the second quarter of 2020, the share price exhibits a significant upward trend, rising from approximately $103 to reach $191 by mid-2023. This represents a near doubling of the share price over roughly three years, signaling increased market valuation and likely positive investor sentiment.

Sales per Share

Sales per share demonstrate a steady and continuous increase throughout the entire period. Starting at $707.61 at the end of 2017, the figure gradually rises quarter by quarter without interruption, reaching $1,258.44 by mid-2023. This consistent growth likely reflects effective revenue generation efforts or expansion, contributing positively to underlying business performance.

Price-to-Sales (P/S) Ratio

The P/S ratio maintains relatively stable levels early in the timeline, fluctuating in a narrow range between 0.09 and 0.13 up to late 2019. Starting in 2020, the ratio begins a subtle yet persistent increase, reaching 0.15 by mid-2023. This upward pattern of the P/S ratio, combined with increasing share prices and sales per share, suggests improving market valuation relative to sales and possibly enhanced investor confidence in growth prospects or profitability improvements.

Overall, the data indicates a company with robust sales growth over the observed period, accompanied by a rising share price and gradually expanding valuation multiples. The relatively stable yet increasing P/S ratio points to a market increasingly willing to assign a premium to the company's sales, reflecting favorable expectations for future performance or strategic positioning.

The analysis of the quarterly financial metrics reveals notable trends and fluctuations in the share price, book value per share (BVPS), and price-to-book value (P/BV) ratio over the observed periods.

Share Price (US$)

The share price exhibited variability with both declines and appreciations across the quarters. Initially, from late 2017 through early 2018, the share price hovered around the low 90s but experienced a dip to under 80 in mid-2018. Subsequently, a gradual recovery and upward movement took place through 2019, stabilizing generally in the upper 80s to low 90s.

From early 2020 onwards, the share price demonstrated strong growth, increasing from the high 80s to surpassing 190 by mid-2023. This indicates a robust positive trend in market valuation despite interim volatility. The increase from approximately 88.74 at the start of 2020 to 191.43 in mid-2023 represents more than a doubling in share price, suggesting growing investor confidence or improved market conditions.

Book Value per Share (BVPS) (US$)

BVPS maintained a relatively stable range around 13 to 14 US dollars from late 2017 to around the end of 2019. A notable rise occurred in the first quarter of 2020, jumping to 17.65 and further to 18.89 by mid-2020.

After mid-2020, however, there is an abrupt and significant drop in BVPS, marked by negative values through several quarters (e.g., -4.99, -3.41, -1.37) and subsequent volatility fluctuating between negative and positive values. These negative book values indicate potential underlying financial difficulties or adjustments such as asset write-downs, impairments, or unusual accounting impacts.

From early 2021 onward, BVPS shows signs of partial recovery, although remaining relatively low with values oscillating close to zero or slightly positive (ranging between -1.03 to 3.39). This suggests stabilization efforts but possibly ongoing balance sheet challenges.

Price-to-Book Value (P/BV) Ratio

The P/BV ratio began at a high level around 7, trending downward superficially to approximately 5.5-6.4 range up to early 2020, reflecting a moderate premium over book value during periods of stable BVPS.

After mid-2020, P/BV ratios become erratic, with missing data followed by extremely elevated values reaching as high as 687.2, 115.23, and 117.82 in various quarters. These anomalously high ratios correspond closely with the periods of negative book value, where a low or negative denominator creates disproportionately large ratio figures.

Such volatility in P/BV implies distorted valuation metrics in the context of negative or near-zero BVPS and challenges the reliability of P/BV as an indicator during these periods. Later quarters show somewhat decreased but still elevated P/BV ratios (e.g., 59.68, 128.44), further confirming persistent imbalance between market valuation and book value metrics.

Overall, the data reflects a company experiencing significant shifts in its underlying book value during the 2020 period and beyond, while the equity market valuation measured by share price saw strong growth, particularly post-2020. The divergence between share price appreciation and unstable or negative book value per share points to changes in market perception, possible strategic transformations, financial restructuring, or accounting anomalies impacting equity valuation metrics differently.