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Is United States Steel (X) a Great Value Stock Right Now?

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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 stock to keep an eye on is United States Steel (X - Free Report) . X is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 2.20. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 4.38. X's Forward P/E has been as high as 4.88 and as low as 1.60, with a median of 3.20, all within the past year.

We should also highlight that X has a P/B ratio of 0.46. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with 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 0.78. Within the past 52 weeks, X's P/B has been as high as 1.34 and as low as 0.45, with a median of 0.79.

Value investors also love the P/S ratio, which is calculated by simply dividing a stock's price with the company's sales. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. X has a P/S ratio of 0.21. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.27.

Finally, our model also underscores that X has a P/CF ratio of 0.88. 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. X's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 2.29. X's P/CF has been as high as 5.16 and as low as 0.87, with a median of 1.69, all within the past year.

If you're looking for another solid Steel - Producers value stock, take a look at Olympic Steel (ZEUS - Free Report) . ZEUS is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value score of A.

Furthermore, Olympic Steel holds a P/B ratio of 0.61 and its industry's price-to-book ratio is 0.78. ZEUS's P/B has been as high as 1.02, as low as 0.54, with a median of 0.74 over the past 12 months.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in United States Steel and Olympic Steel'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 X and ZEUS is an impressive value stock right now.


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