Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust (LSE: SMT) shares are currently 41.5% cheaper than their all-time high. That looks like an absolute steal, and I plan to capitalise on it.

The trust rose to prominence in 2020 when stock markets across the globe nosedived. Not Scottish Mortgage though. It bucked the trend, rising over 100% during the year.

But since then its share price has retreated. Today, at £8.95, it looks like great value compared to the £15.28 heights we’ve seen it hit before.

I’ve been scouring the FTSE 100 and Scottish Mortgage shares might just be one of the best bargains out there right now.

Gaining momentum

That being said, shares in the Baillie Gifford fund aren’t as cheap as they have been. This year, the stock’s been gaining momentum. It’s up a healthy 13.5%, beating the Footsie’s return of 6.8%. In the last 12 months, it’s climbed 30.2%. That may worry some investors who are seeking value.

Of course, I want to try and buy stocks when they’re at their lowest. That way, I can make bigger returns over the long run. But even with its rise, I think Scottish Mortgage has some growing room left.

Scottish Mortgage still looks like great value today. It’s trading at an 8% discount to its net asset value. That, in theory, means I can get access to the companies that the trust holds for cheaper than their market rate.

Risk profile

But there’s a certain level of risk when investing in Scottish Mortgage. First, it owns unlisted companies. Valuations for these companies are sometimes difficult to pin down.

It also has a heavy weighting to growth stocks, and these can be extremely volatile. Investors often have high expectations for their earnings potentials, so if they fail to achieve forecast earnings their share price can plummet.

They can generate incredibly impressive returns, such as Nvidia has for the trust. But investors should also be wary that they can’t all be as successful as the chipmaker. That’s the risk with investing in less established companies and, as such, Scottish Mortgage.

Interest rates

There’s another reason I’m bullish on the trust. When interest rate cuts come, I reckon we could continue to see its share price trending upwards.

Growth stocks don’t fare well in high rate environments. They’re leveraged with debt and paying this off becomes more of a challenge when rates are as high as they’ve been. During times like this, investors tend to revert to saver investments rather than risky growth stocks, such as bonds.

But cuts should see investors’ appetite for owning growth shares pick up again. Scottish Mortgage will be a direct beneficiary of this. That said, any delay in cuts could impact the trust.

Getting in now

I’m keen to rush in and snap up some shares now. If I have the cash over the next few weeks, that’s exactly what I’ll be doing.

Its share price has been gaining pace this year and I reckon we could see it continue with this in the months to come. I want to make the most of its current price while it still looks like one of the best bargains on the Footsie.