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Should Value Investors Buy Baytex Energy (BTE) Stock?

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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.

Looking at the history of these trends, perhaps none is more beloved than value investing. This strategy simply looks to identify companies that are being undervalued by the broader market. 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 Baytex Energy (BTE - Free Report) . BTE is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 7.74, while its industry has an average P/E of 10.18. Over the last 12 months, BTE's Forward P/E has been as high as 14.45 and as low as 4.73, with a median of 7.13.

Investors should also recognize that BTE has a P/B ratio of 0.89. 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 solid versus its industry's average P/B of 1.97. Over the past 12 months, BTE's P/B has been as high as 1.14 and as low as 0.74, with a median of 0.98.

Value investors also love the P/S ratio, which is calculated by simply dividing a stock's price with the company's sales. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. BTE has a P/S ratio of 0.76. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.09.

Finally, our model also underscores that BTE has a P/CF ratio of 3.59. 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. BTE's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 5.44. Within the past 12 months, BTE's P/CF has been as high as 5.02 and as low as 2.05, with a median of 4.06.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in Baytex Energy's strong Value grade, but they help show that the stock is likely undervalued right now. When factoring in the strength of its earnings outlook, BTE looks like an impressive value stock at the moment.


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