Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Are Investors Undervaluing Veritiv (VRTV) Right Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Here at Zacks, our focus is on the proven Zacks Rank system, which emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find great stocks. Nevertheless, we are always paying attention to the latest value, growth, and momentum trends to underscore strong picks.

Of these, value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. 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 company to watch right now is Veritiv . VRTV is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A.

Investors should also note that VRTV holds a PEG ratio of 0.48. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. VRTV's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 0.84. Over the last 12 months, VRTV's PEG has been as high as 0.62 and as low as 0.30, with a median of 0.49.

Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock's price with the company's revenue. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. VRTV has a P/S ratio of 0.23. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.42.

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

Published in