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Should Value Investors Buy These Finance Stocks?

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While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.

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.

In addition to the Zacks Rank, investors looking for stocks with specific traits can utilize our Style Scores system. Of course, value investors will be most interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with "A" grades for Value and high Zacks Ranks are among the best value stocks available at any given moment.

One company to watch right now is Capstar Financial . CSTR is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A.

Investors should also recognize that CSTR has a P/B ratio of 1.22. 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 1.64. CSTR's P/B has been as high as 1.48 and as low as 1.11, with a median of 1.27, over the past year.

Finally, we should also recognize that CSTR has a P/CF ratio of 9.72. This metric takes into account a company's operating cash flow and can be used to find stocks that are undervalued based on their solid cash outlook. This company's current P/CF looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 10.82. Over the past year, CSTR's P/CF has been as high as 15.32 and as low as 9.63, with a median of 11.18.

Another great Banks - Southeast stock you could consider is First BanCorp. (FBP - Free Report) , which is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value Score of A.

Shares of First BanCorp. are currently trading at a forward earnings multiple of 8.80 and a PEG ratio of 0.89 compared to its industry's P/E and PEG ratios of 10.24 and 0.74, respectively.

Over the last 12 months, FBP's P/E has been as high as 11.63, as low as 8.28, with a median of 9.90, and its PEG ratio has been as high as 1.09, as low as 0.22, with a median of 0.28.

First BanCorp. also has a P/B ratio of 1.21 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 1.64. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 1.60, as low as 1.09, with a median of 1.28.

These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Capstar Financial and First BanCorp. are likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, CSTR and FBP feels like a great value stock at the moment.


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