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Are Investors Undervaluing American Airlines (AAL) Right Now?

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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.

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.

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 to watch right now is American Airlines (AAL - Free Report) . AAL is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A.

Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is is calculated as price divided by 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. AAL has a P/S ratio of 0.18. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.48.

Finally, investors should note that AAL has a P/CF ratio of 12.51. 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 stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 20.64. Over the past 52 weeks, AAL's P/CF has been as high as 36.69 and as low as -305.42, with a median of 14.63.

If you're looking for another solid Transportation - Airline value stock, take a look at Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) . DAL is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value score of A.

Furthermore, Delta Air Lines holds a P/B ratio of 4.59 and its industry's price-to-book ratio is 4.08. DAL's P/B has been as high as 9.62, as low as 3.92, with a median of 5.71 over the past 12 months.

Value investors will likely look at more than just these metrics, but the above data helps show that American Airlines and Delta Air Lines are likely undervalued currently. And when considering the strength of its earnings outlook, AAL and DAL sticks out as one of the market's strongest value stocks.


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