Nestle shares undervalued, says Barron's

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"Arguably, they're the strongest food company in the world," Eric Scher, a Sanford C. Bernstein analyst told Barron's. "Nobody else is growing at everything straight across the board like Nestle."

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Nestle SA <NESN.VX> shares look undervalued and could rise 20 percent over the next 12 months, weekly financial Barron's said on Sunday.

"Arguably, they're the strongest food company in the world," Eric Scher, a Sanford C. Bernstein analyst told Barron's. "Nobody else is growing at everything straight across the board like Nestle."

Scher argues Nestle shares should be trading about 20 percent higher in a year.

The report said that, at its recent price of about 490 Swiss francs, the stock was trading about 10 percent below its 52-week high and at a discount to most of its peers on several valuation measures.

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With names such as Butterfinger candy bars, Gerber baby foods, Stouffer's and LeanCuisine frozen meals, JuicyJuice beverages, Nestle has a global stable of blockbuster brands -- 29 of which have annual sales exceeding one billion Swiss francs each, the report said.

One Swiss franc equals about 96 U.S. cents.

(Reporting by Jui Chakravorty; Editing by Andre Grenon)