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Are Investors Undervaluing Barrett Business Services (BBSI) 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 a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.

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 company value investors might notice is Barrett Business Services (BBSI - Free Report) . BBSI is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 11.34 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 18.71. Over the past year, BBSI's Forward P/E has been as high as 14.23 and as low as 10.60, with a median of 12.19.

BBSI is also sporting a PEG ratio of 0.81. 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. BBSI's industry currently sports an average PEG of 1.88. Over the last 12 months, BBSI's PEG has been as high as 1.02 and as low as 0.71, with a median of 0.86.

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. BBSI has a P/S ratio of 0.54. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.2.

Finally, our model also underscores that BBSI has a P/CF ratio of 10.88. 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. BBSI's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 15.24. BBSI's P/CF has been as high as 13.56 and as low as 10.11, with a median of 11.77, all within the past year.

If you're looking for another solid Outsourcing value stock, take a look at Brink's (BCO - Free Report) . BCO is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value score of A.

Additionally, Brink's has a P/B ratio of 5.30 while its industry's price-to-book ratio sits at 12.16. For BCO, this valuation metric has been as high as 9.13, as low as 4.38, with a median of 7.17 over the past year.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in Barrett Business Services and Brink's strong Value grade, but they help show that the stocks are likely undervalued right now. When factoring in the strength of its earnings outlook, BBSI and BCO look like an impressive value stock at the moment.


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Barrett Business Services, Inc. (BBSI) - free report >>

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