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Is Macy's (M) Stock Undervalued Right Now?

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Here at Zacks, our focus is on the proven Zacks Rank system, which emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find great stocks. Nevertheless, we are always paying attention to the latest value, growth, and momentum trends to underscore 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 rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.

On top of the Zacks Rank, investors can also look at our innovative Style Scores system to find stocks with specific traits. For example, value investors will want to focus on the "Value" category. Stocks with high Zacks Ranks and "A" grades for Value will be some of the highest-quality value stocks on the market today.

Macy's (M - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. M is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 5.99 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 11.28. Over the past 52 weeks, M's Forward P/E has been as high as 8.42 and as low as 5.30, with a median of 6.98.

Investors will also notice that M has a PEG ratio of 0.80. This popular figure is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also considers a company's expected EPS growth rate. M's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 1.35. M's PEG has been as high as 1.04 and as low as 0.71, with a median of 0.90, all within the past year.

Investors should also recognize that M has a P/B ratio of 0.74. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This company's current P/B looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/B of 1.30. Within the past 52 weeks, M's P/B has been as high as 1.24 and as low as 0.70, with a median of 0.89.

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. M has a P/S ratio of 0.17. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.2.

Finally, our model also underscores that M has a P/CF ratio of 2.36. 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. M's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 4.25. M's P/CF has been as high as 3.94 and as low as 2.25, with a median of 2.83, all within the past year.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in Macy's'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, M looks like an impressive value stock at the moment.


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