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 rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.
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.
Cardinal Health (CAH) is a stock many investors are watching right now. CAH is currently sporting a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 15.48, while its industry has an average P/E of 16.36. Over the last 12 months, CAH's Forward P/E has been as high as 20.15 and as low as 13.69, with a median of 15.30.
CAH is also sporting a PEG ratio of 1.24. 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. CAH's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 1.67. Over the last 12 months, CAH's PEG has been as high as 1.88 and as low as 1.22, with a median of 1.49.
Finally, investors will want to recognize that CAH has a P/CF ratio of 15.27. This metric focuses on a firm's operating cash flow and is often used to find stocks that are undervalued based on the strength of their cash outlook. CAH's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 17.30. Over the past 52 weeks, CAH's P/CF has been as high as 17.47 and as low as 12.96, with a median of 15.12.
These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Cardinal Health is likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, CAH feels like a great value stock at the moment.
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Cardinal Health, Inc. (CAH): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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