The Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) share price has been the darling of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) for some time now.
Shares in the buy now, pay later (BNPL) leader have rocketed in value in recent years. In fact, the Afterpay share price is up 141.1% in 2020 and 2,403.1% since its first closing price on 30 June 2017.
All of these numbers would suggest that Afterpay is not a great buy right now. However, shares in the BNPL company have slumped 23.1% since hitting a new record high in late August.
That to me says that there could be a buying opportunity for investors willing to roll the dice.
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Why the Afterpay share price could be a buy
Falling by nearly a quarter in less than a month is enough to make any value investor pay attention.
To be clear, Afterpay still trades at a wildly high price to sales ratio and actually hasn't posted a profit yet.
That hasn't stopped keen investors from jumping on board the BNPL train. US tech stocks have been volatile in recent days and we're starting to see that in the Australian market with the Afterpay share price falling 5.4% lower in yesterday's trade.
I think much of Afterpay's true value hinges on both economic conditions and its expansion plans. If the economy can remain intact, with strong government support, then I believe online retail may continue to boom.
Similarly, strong execution in offshore markets could be the key to finally realising some of the promised growth that investors are banking on.
There is tight competition in the BNPL sector with more companies eyeing off a slice of the market. But Afterpay is an incumbent and quickly becoming a global leader alongside the likes of Klarna Bank AB.
Foolish takeaway
I think there is certainly more volatility ahead of the Afterpay share price. The question for investors is whether this represents a large enough dip to buy in and hold for the long-term.
If the economy holds up and Afterpay's USA success continues, I could see it surging past $100 in early 2021.
