Investors don’t need to spend a fortune to acquire top-quality FTSE 250 shares. Here are two to consider with excellent long-term potential despite their low price-to-earnings (P/E) ratios.
ITV
Amid improving conditions in the advertising market, ITV (LSE:ITV) could be about to overcome the horrors of recent years.
The broadcaster’s share price has slumped 55% since 2019, a period that also saw it affected by writers’ and actors’ strikes in the US.
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In 2025, ITV expects total advertising revenues to rise 2.5%. That’s even though final quarter results will be impacted by extremely-strong comparatives and advertisers’ jitters surrounding October’s Budget.
Digital avertising revenues are especially strong, up 15% between January and September. This pays testament to the huge success of the company’s ITVX streaming platform, a possible lever for robust long-term profits growth.
I think ITV shares are worth serious consideration at current prices, trading on a forward P/E ratio of 7.2 times.
On top of this, its forward price-to-earnings growth (PEG) ratio is 0.6. Any sub-1 reading indicates that a share is undervalued relative to predicted profits.
The 7.9% forward dividend on ITV shares provides an added sweetener. This is more than double the FTSE 250 average of 3.4%.
Like any share, investing in this broadcasting giant involves taking on some risk. It faces extreme competition from other forms of media, and especially other streaming companies. Its recovery may also be hindered by a prolonged downturn in the domestic economy.
Yet on balance, I think the potential benefits of ITV shares still make them worth considering. And especially given their low valuation.
Bank of Georgia Group
The risks facing Bank of Georgia (LSE:BGEO) have risen recently. That’s despite the fact the Eurasian country’s economy — and as a consequence, its banking industry — continues to boom.
Helped by an 11.1% GDP jump in quarter three, the FTSE 250 bank saw lending activity up 18.8% at constant currencies. This was up from 17.7% the quarter before.
And so pre-tax profit soared 43.8% during the third quarter.
Investors are worried about the long-term economic implications of Georgia’s political crisis on its banks. The country’s in a tug of war over between politicians who want better ties to Europe and those who see its future alongside Russia.
But could this uncertainty now be baked into the cheapness of Bank of Georgia shares? I think the answer could be yes.
Today its forward P/E ratio sits at 3.3 times. This is well below the bank’s five-year average close of 5.4 times.
The emerging market bank’s forward PEG, meanwhile, is a rock-bottom 0.1.
It’s also worth remembering the bank’s Armenian operations could help offset potential problems in its home market. It sources around 22% of pre-tax profits from Georgia’s southerly neighbour.
With Bank of Georgia also carrying a 5.1% dividend yield, I think it’s another attractive value share to consider.
