Should Value Investors Buy Charles River Associates (CRAI) Stock?

Zacks
04-18

The proven Zacks Rank system focuses on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find winning stocks. Nevertheless, we know that our readers all have their own perspectives, so we are always looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong picks.

Of these, value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. Value investors use tried-and-true metrics and fundamental analysis to find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.

Zacks has developed the innovative Style Scores system to highlight stocks with specific traits. For example, value investors will be interested in stocks with great grades in the "Value" category. When paired with a high Zacks Rank, "A" grades in the Value category are among the strongest value stocks on the market today.

One company to watch right now is Charles River Associates (CRAI). CRAI is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 20.77, which compares to its industry's average of 23.85. Over the last 12 months, CRAI's Forward P/E has been as high as 28.96 and as low as 20.23, with a median of 25.02.

Investors will also notice that CRAI has a PEG ratio of 1.30. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. CRAI's industry has an average PEG of 1.76 right now. Within the past year, CRAI's PEG has been as high as 1.81 and as low as 1.26, with a median of 1.56.

Investors should also recognize that CRAI has a P/B ratio of 5.29. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 6.56. CRAI's P/B has been as high as 6.85 and as low as 4.62, with a median of 5.88, over the past year.

Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock's price with the company's revenue. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. CRAI has a P/S ratio of 1.61. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.75.

Finally, our model also underscores that CRAI has a P/CF ratio of 15.42. This figure highlights a company's operating cash flow and can be used to find firms that are undervalued when considering their impressive cash outlook. CRAI's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 17.78. Within the past 12 months, CRAI's P/CF has been as high as 20.36 and as low as 14.38, with a median of 17.49.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in Charles River Associates's strong Value grade, but they help show that the stock is likely undervalued right now. When factoring in the strength of its earnings outlook, CRAI looks like an impressive value stock at the moment.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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