Here at Zacks, our focus is on the proven Zacks Rank system, which emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find great stocks. Nevertheless, we are always paying attention to the latest value, growth, and momentum trends to underscore strong picks.
Looking at the history of these trends, perhaps none is more beloved than value investing. This strategy simply looks to identify companies that are being undervalued by the broader market. Value investors use fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large.
On top of the Zacks Rank, investors can also look at our innovative Style Scores system to find stocks with specific traits. For example, value investors will want to focus on the "Value" category. Stocks with high Zacks Ranks and "A" grades for Value will be some of the highest-quality value stocks on the market today.
One company value investors might notice is Post Holdings (POST). POST is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value.
Investors should also recognize that POST has a P/B ratio of 1.65. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to 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 1.95. POST's P/B has been as high as 1.75 and as low as 1.51, with a median of 1.62, over the past year.
Value investors also love the P/S ratio, which is calculated by simply dividing a stock's price with the company's sales. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. POST has a P/S ratio of 0.8. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.84.
Finally, investors will want to recognize that POST has a P/CF ratio of 8.49. This metric focuses on a firm's operating cash flow and is often used to find stocks that are undervalued based on the strength of their cash outlook. POST's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 13.82. POST's P/CF has been as high as 9.41 and as low as 7.78, with a median of 8.48, all within the past year.
Investors could also keep in mind United Natural Foods (UNFI), an Food - Miscellaneous stock with a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) and Value grade of A.
Additionally, United Natural Foods has a P/B ratio of 0.90 while its industry's price-to-book ratio sits at 1.95. For UNFI, this valuation metric has been as high as 1.27, as low as 0.31, with a median of 0.72 over the past year.
These are only a few of the key metrics included in Post Holdings and United Natural Foods strong Value grade, but they help show that the stocks are likely undervalued right now. When factoring in the strength of its earnings outlook, POST and UNFI look 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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