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Know the 'Big 3' Investing Styles: Income, Value and Growth

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Many different investing styles are deployed, as investors have their individual preferences. Still, market participants typically gravitate toward one of three strategies: income, growth or value.

Each style caters to different investor profiles. Income investors seek passive income from dividend payouts or other income-generating assets, growth investors seek to reap market-beating gains from companies expected to grow at an above-average level, and value investors look for discounted market opportunities.

Let’s take a closer dive into each strategy.

 

Income Investing

Income investing is all about reaping passive income. Those who follow this style typically invest in dividend-paying stocks, bonds, real estate investment trusts (REITs) and other securities that offer regular income.

Concerning individual stocks, the elite group of Dividend Aristocrats has long been a favorite among income-focused investors. To join the elite Dividend Aristocrats group, companies must be part of the S&P 500 and increase their dividend payments for at least 25 consecutive years.

A 25-year streak of increased payouts is no easy feat, owing to these companies’ abilities to operate reliably in the face of many economic environments over the years. A famous example of a Dividend Aristocrat is PepsiCo (PEP - Free Report) , which currently sports a favorable Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

The favorable earnings estimate revisions trend for its current fiscal year is illustrated below.

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The style is primarily geared toward more conservative investors, with dividend-paying stocks commonly carrying decreased volatility.

 

Growth Investing

Growth investing is a highly common strategy, with investors targeting companies expected to grow their earnings and revenues at an above-average level. It’s a development that commonly follows through to share outperformance.

These companies typically reinvest their earnings back into the business for expansion, allowing them to achieve meaningful scaling efficiencies. Many are at the forefront of innovation, developing new technologies or disrupting traditional industries with new business models. A great example of this has been NVIDIA (NVDA - Free Report) over the last year, with Tesla (TSLA - Free Report) a better example of the last decade.

Below is a chart illustrating Tesla’s revenue on a quarterly basis.

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

High-growth companies generally trade at rich valuation multiples, reflecting the high growth expected. Of course, this strategy is more volatile than the rest, as the long-term picture can change rapidly.

Growth investing is styled more toward investors who can handle increased volatility with a longer investment horizon.

 

Value Investing

Value investing involves buying stocks at a ‘discount’, with the idea that the market will eventually ‘catch up’ and recognize their true value, which can lead to serious gains. After all, we all enjoy a good deal.

These stocks are typically priced lower than their peers in terms of valuation ratios like price-to-earnings (P/E), price-to-book (P/B), and price-to-sales (P/S), among others.

The strategy requires patience above all else, as it may take a significant amount of time until investors ‘catch up’ and realize the stock’s intrinsic value. Tenet Healthcare (THC - Free Report) is an example of a stock sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) with a Value Style Score of ‘A’.

 

Bottom Line

There are many investing styles deployed, with the most common being income, growth, or value-oriented. Income investors seek steady payouts, growth investors seek companies expected to grow at an above-average pace, and value investors seek deals hidden in plain sight.

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