Is L-3 Communications the Perfect Stock?

Updated

Every investor would love to stumble upon the perfect stock. But will you ever really find a stock that provides everything you could possibly want?

One thing's for sure: You'll never discover truly great investments unless you actively look for them. Let's discuss the ideal qualities of a perfect stock, then decide if L-3 Communications (NYS: LLL) fits the bill.

The quest for perfection
Stocks that look great based on one factor may prove horrible elsewhere, making due diligence a crucial part of your investing research. The best stocks excel in many different areas, including these important factors:

  • Growth. Expanding businesses show healthy revenue growth. While past growth is no guarantee that revenue will keep rising, it's certainly a better sign than a stagnant top line.

  • Margins. Higher sales mean nothing if a company can't produce profits from them. Strong margins ensure that company can turn revenue into profit.

  • Balance sheet. At debt-laden companies, banks and bondholders compete with shareholders for management's attention. Companies with strong balance sheets don't have to worry about the distraction of debt.

  • Money-making opportunities. Return on equity helps measure how well a company is finding opportunities to turn its resources into profitable business endeavors.

  • Valuation. You can't afford to pay too much for even the best companies. By using normalized figures, you can see how a stock's simple earnings multiple fits into a longer-term context.

  • Dividends. For tangible proof of profits, a check to shareholders every three months can't be beat. Companies with solid dividends and strong commitments to increasing payouts treat shareholders well.

With those factors in mind, let's take a closer look at L-3 Communications.

Factor

What We Want to See

Actual

Pass or Fail?

Growth

5-Year Annual Revenue Growth > 15%

8.6%

Fail

1-Year Revenue Growth > 12%

0.3%

Fail

Margins

Gross Margin > 35%

12.2%

Fail

Net Margin > 15%

6.0%

Fail

Balance Sheet

Debt to Equity < 50%

59.7%

Fail

Current Ratio > 1.3

1.86

Pass

Opportunities

Return on Equity > 15%

13.9%

Fail

Valuation

Normalized P/E < 20

9.68

Pass

Dividends

Current Yield > 2%

2.3%

Pass

5-Year Dividend Growth > 10%

24.0%

Pass

Total Score

4 out of 10

Source: Capital IQ, a division of Standard and Poor's. Total score = number of passes.

With just four points, L-3 Communications hasn't treated shareholders very well. The entire industry has faced tough times and an uncertain future, but at L-3's current valuation, value investors are starting to take notice.

Investors are clearly worried about the current impasse in Washington and the inevitable budget cuts that will result from big fiscal deficits. Those worries have kept a lid on defense stocks, with Northrop Grumman (NYS: NOC) and Alliant Techsystems (NYS: ATK) joining L-3 with trailing P/Es below 10. And given that L-3 gets more than 75% of its business directly from the U.S. military, it could see a much bigger hit than some of its peers.

But L-3 has some positives. Along with Boeing (NYS: BA) and Lockheed Martin (NYS: LMT) , L-3 stands out for its rising backlogs over the past year. More importantly, as fellow Fool contributor Andrew Tonner recently pointed out, L-3's specialization in unmanned aircraft and cybersecurity could give it a better chance to survive budget cuts.

The debt ceiling debate could well serve as a catalyst for L-3 and other defense stocks going forward. At this point, any clarity on the future of defense spending would help these companies. So while L-3 isn't perfectly positioned right now, its compelling value proposition could get even better in the near future.

Keep searching
No stock is a sure thing, but some stocks are a lot closer to perfect than others. By looking for the perfect stock, you'll go a long way toward improving your investing prowess and learning how to separate out the best investments from the rest.

Click hereto add L-3 Communications to My Watchlist, which can find all of our Foolish analysis on it and all your other stocks.

Finding the perfect stock is only one piece of a successful investment strategy. Get the big picture by taking a look at our "13 Steps to Investing Foolishly."

At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributorDan Caplingerdoesn't own shares of the companies mentioned in this article. The Motley Fool owns shares of L-3 Communications, Northrop Grumman, and Lockheed Martin.Motley Fool newsletter serviceshave recommended buying shares of L-3 Communications. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Fool has adisclosure policy.

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