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Are Investors Undervaluing These Medical Stocks Right Now?

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Here at Zacks, we focus on our proven ranking system, which places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, to find winning stocks. But we also understand that investors develop their own strategies, so we are constantly looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong companies for our readers.

Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of market. Value investors rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.

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 value investors might notice is AmerisourceBergen . ABC is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 11.35. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 18.73. ABC's Forward P/E has been as high as 13.43 and as low as 10.53, with a median of 11.76, all within the past year.

Investors will also notice that ABC has a PEG ratio of 1.01. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. ABC's industry has an average PEG of 1.77 right now. Within the past year, ABC's PEG has been as high as 1.68 and as low as 0.94, with a median of 1.06.

Finally, investors should note that ABC has a P/CF ratio of 12.65. This data point considers a firm's operating cash flow and is frequently used to find companies that are undervalued when considering their solid cash outlook. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 49.66. Within the past 12 months, ABC's P/CF has been as high as 13.16 and as low as -8.74, with a median of -7.39.

Another great Medical - Dental Supplies stock you could consider is McKesson (MCK - Free Report) , which is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value Score of A.

McKesson is currently trading with a Forward P/E ratio of 10.25 while its PEG ratio sits at 1.13. Both of the company's metrics compare favorably to its industry's average P/E of 18.73 and average PEG ratio of 1.77.

Over the past year, MCK's P/E has been as high as 11.27, as low as 9.17, with a median of 10.04; its PEG ratio has been as high as 1.73, as low as 1.09, with a median of 1.06 during the same time period.

McKesson also has a P/B ratio of -402.99 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 5.95. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 184.34, as low as -717.21, with a median of -107.46.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in AmerisourceBergen and McKesson's great Value grade. Still, they help show that the stock is likely being undervalued at the moment. Add this to the strength of its earnings outlook, and we can clearly see that ABC and MCK is an impressive value stock right now.


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