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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 rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.
Luckily, Zacks has developed its own Style Scores system in an effort to find stocks with specific traits. Value investors will be interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with both "A" grades in the Value category and high Zacks Ranks are among the strongest value stocks on the market right now.
One company to watch right now is CNO Financial Group (CNO - Free Report) . CNO is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 10, while its industry has an average P/E of 10.36. CNO's Forward P/E has been as high as 12.46 and as low as 9.33, with a median of 10.58, all within the past year.
Another notable valuation metric for CNO is its P/B ratio of 0.56. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against 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 1.45. CNO's P/B has been as high as 0.75 and as low as 0.52, with a median of 0.59, 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. CNO has a P/S ratio of 0.68. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.96.
Finally, our model also underscores that CNO has a P/CF ratio of 4.06. 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. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 12.22. Within the past 12 months, CNO's P/CF has been as high as 6.12 and as low as 3.75, with a median of 4.24.
Another great Insurance - Multi line stock you could consider is Old Republic International (ORI - Free Report) , which is a # 1 (Strong Buy) stock with a Value Score of A.
Old Republic International also has a P/B ratio of 1.17 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 1.45. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 1.28, as low as 0.88, with a median of 1.13.
These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that CNO Financial Group and Old Republic International are likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, CNO and ORI feels like a great value stock at the moment.
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Should Value Investors Buy These Finance Stocks?
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 rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.
Luckily, Zacks has developed its own Style Scores system in an effort to find stocks with specific traits. Value investors will be interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with both "A" grades in the Value category and high Zacks Ranks are among the strongest value stocks on the market right now.
One company to watch right now is CNO Financial Group (CNO - Free Report) . CNO is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 10, while its industry has an average P/E of 10.36. CNO's Forward P/E has been as high as 12.46 and as low as 9.33, with a median of 10.58, all within the past year.
Another notable valuation metric for CNO is its P/B ratio of 0.56. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against 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 1.45. CNO's P/B has been as high as 0.75 and as low as 0.52, with a median of 0.59, 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. CNO has a P/S ratio of 0.68. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.96.
Finally, our model also underscores that CNO has a P/CF ratio of 4.06. 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. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 12.22. Within the past 12 months, CNO's P/CF has been as high as 6.12 and as low as 3.75, with a median of 4.24.
Another great Insurance - Multi line stock you could consider is Old Republic International (ORI - Free Report) , which is a # 1 (Strong Buy) stock with a Value Score of A.
Old Republic International also has a P/B ratio of 1.17 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 1.45. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 1.28, as low as 0.88, with a median of 1.13.
These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that CNO Financial Group and Old Republic International are likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, CNO and ORI feels like a great value stock at the moment.