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Is The Greenbrier Companies (GBX) Stock Undervalued Right Now?

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Here at Zacks, we focus on our proven ranking system, which places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, to find winning stocks. But we also understand that investors develop their own strategies, so we are constantly looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong companies for our readers.

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.

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 The Greenbrier Companies (GBX - Free Report) . GBX is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 10.56 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 12.46. GBX's Forward P/E has been as high as 14.07 and as low as 8.99, with a median of 11.82, all within the past year.

Investors should also note that GBX holds a PEG ratio of 0.56. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. GBX's industry has an average PEG of 0.95 right now. Within the past year, GBX's PEG has been as high as 2.01 and as low as 0.54, with a median of 1.65.

We should also highlight that GBX has a P/B ratio of 0.99. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 1.70. Within the past 52 weeks, GBX's P/B has been as high as 1.18 and as low as 0.71, with a median of 1.01.

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. GBX has a P/S ratio of 0.41. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.98.

Finally, investors should note that GBX has a P/CF ratio of 6.44. This data point considers a firm's operating cash flow and is frequently used to find companies that are undervalued when considering their solid cash outlook. GBX's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 8.23. Over the past 52 weeks, GBX's P/CF has been as high as 8.85 and as low as 5.68, with a median of 7.26.

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


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