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Should Value Investors Buy Office Depot (ODP) Stock?

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While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.

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 fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large.

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 to watch right now is Office Depot (ODP - Free Report) . ODP is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 5.55, which compares to its industry's average of 13.44. Over the past 52 weeks, ODP's Forward P/E has been as high as 9.44 and as low as 3.19, with a median of 6.05.

Investors should also note that ODP holds a PEG ratio of 0.50. 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. ODP's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 1.38. Over the past 52 weeks, ODP's PEG has been as high as 0.55 and as low as 0.29, with a median of 0.45.

Finally, our model also underscores that ODP has a P/CF ratio of 5.54. 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. ODP's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 19.95. ODP's P/CF has been as high as 7.69 and as low as 3.14, with a median of 5.08, all within the past year.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in Office Depot's great Value grade. Still, they help show that the stock is likely being undervalued at the moment. Add this to the strength of its earnings outlook, and we can clearly see that ODP is an impressive value stock right now.


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