Xero Ltd (ASX: XRO) shares are rising on Thursday.
In morning trade, the cloud accounting platform provider's shares are up 1.5% to $158.60.
However, despite today's rise, its shares are still down over 15% from their peak. Is this a buying opportunity? Let's find out.
Should you buy Xero shares?
The team at Goldman Sachs believes that now would be a great time to snap up the company's shares before they rebound.
In fact, the broker suspects that Xero's shares could not only return to their peak but they could then continue to break records.
This is due to the company's strong position in a rapidly growing market with a huge total addressable market (TAM). Commenting on the company, the broker said:
Xero is a Global Cloud Accounting SaaS player, with existing focuses in ANZ, UK, North American and SE Asian markets. We see Xero as very well-placed to take advantage of the digitisation of SMBs globally, driven by compelling efficiency benefits and regulatory tailwinds, with >100mn SMBs worldwide representing a >NZ$100bn TAM.
Given the company's pivot to profitable growth and corresponding faster earnings ramp, we see an attractive entry point into a global growth story with Xero our preferred large-cap technology name in ANZ – the stock is Buy rated.
Big potential returns
According to a recent note, the broker has put a buy rating and $201.00 price target on Xero's shares.
Based on its current share price, this implies potential upside of approximately 27% for investors over the next 12 months.
To put that into context, a $10,000 investment would turn into approximately $12,700 by this time next year if Goldman Sachs is on the money with its recommendation.
Is anyone else bullish?
There are a number of other brokers that are just as bullish as Goldman Sachs.
For example, recent notes out of Citi and UBS reveal that their analysts have put buy ratings on Xero's shares with price targets of $198.00 and $199.00, respectively. These prices targets suggest that upside of 25% is possible from current levels.
And finally, Morgan Stanley is arguably the biggest bull of them all. Its analysts have put an overweight rating and $220.00 price target on the company's shares. This implies potential upside of approximately 39% for investors between now and this time next year.
All in all, these analysts appear to believe that recent weakness has opened the door for investors to buy at very attractive prices.
