Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Are Investors Undervaluing Manulife Financial Corp (MFC) Right Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

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, perhaps no stock market trend is more popular than value investing, which is a strategy that has proven to be successful in all sorts of market environments. Value investors use fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large.

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 Manulife Financial Corp (MFC - Free Report) . MFC is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A.

We should also highlight that MFC has a P/B ratio of 0.94. 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 attractive against its industry's average P/B of 1.31. Within the past 52 weeks, MFC's P/B has been as high as 1.02 and as low as 0.77, with a median of 0.89.

Finally, investors will want to recognize that MFC has a P/CF ratio of 6.48. This metric focuses on a firm's operating cash flow and is often used to find stocks that are undervalued based on the strength of their cash outlook. MFC's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 9.60. Over the past year, MFC's P/CF has been as high as 6.84 and as low as 3.90, with a median of 5.58.

Investors could also keep in mind Voya Financial (VOYA - Free Report) , an Insurance - Life Insurance stock with a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) and Value grade of A.

Shares of Voya Financial are currently trading at a forward earnings multiple of 8.71 and a PEG ratio of 1.18 compared to its industry's P/E and PEG ratios of 6.76 and 0.67, respectively.

VOYA's Forward P/E has been as high as 10.56 and as low as 7.81, with a median of 8.97. During the same time period, its PEG ratio has been as high as 6.82, as low as 1.18, with a median of 2.95.

Furthermore, Voya Financial holds a P/B ratio of 1.16 and its industry's price-to-book ratio is 1.31. VOYA's P/B has been as high as 1.18, as low as 0.69, with a median of 0.98 over the past 12 months.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in Manulife Financial Corp and Voya Financial'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 MFC and VOYA is an impressive value stock right now.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Manulife Financial Corp (MFC) - free report >>

Voya Financial, Inc. (VOYA) - free report >>

Published in