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Should Value Investors Buy Cardtronics (CATM) Stock?

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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.

Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of market. Value investors rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.

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 value investors might notice is Cardtronics . CATM is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 17.37. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 25.36. Over the past 52 weeks, CATM's Forward P/E has been as high as 20.86 and as low as 6.41, with a median of 14.81.

We also note that CATM holds a PEG ratio of 1.45. 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. CATM's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 1.68. CATM's PEG has been as high as 1.87 and as low as 0.50, with a median of 1.32, all within the past year.

Investors should also recognize that CATM has a P/B ratio of 3.68. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to 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 10.51. Within the past 52 weeks, CATM's P/B has been as high as 4.41 and as low as 2.07, with a median of 2.84.

These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Cardtronics is likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, CATM feels like a great value stock at the moment.