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Should Value Investors Buy Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) Stock?

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The proven Zacks Rank system focuses on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find winning stocks. Nevertheless, we know that our readers all have their own perspectives, so we are always looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong picks.

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.

On top of the Zacks Rank, investors can also look at our innovative Style Scores system to find stocks with specific traits. For example, value investors will want to focus on the "Value" category. Stocks with high Zacks Ranks and "A" grades for Value will be some of the highest-quality value stocks on the market today.

One stock to keep an eye on is Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM - Free Report) . SFM is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 13.75, which compares to its industry's average of 13.84. SFM's Forward P/E has been as high as 15.37 and as low as 10.38, with a median of 13.13, all within the past year.

Investors will also notice that SFM has a PEG ratio of 1.32. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. SFM's industry has an average PEG of 1.43 right now. Over the last 12 months, SFM's PEG has been as high as 2.12 and as low as 1.28, with a median of 1.70.

Finally, we should also recognize that SFM has a P/CF ratio of 7.44. 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 10.17. Over the past year, SFM's P/CF has been as high as 7.99 and as low as 5.28, with a median of 6.58.

Value investors will likely look at more than just these metrics, but the above data helps show that Sprouts Farmers Market is likely undervalued currently. And when considering the strength of its earnings outlook, SFM sticks out at as one of the market's strongest value stocks.


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