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.
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 US Foods (USFD). USFD is currently sporting a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value.
Investors should also note that USFD holds a PEG ratio of 0.91. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. USFD's industry currently sports an average PEG of 1.08. Over the last 12 months, USFD's PEG has been as high as 1.05 and as low as 0.81, with a median of 0.89.
Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock's price with the company's revenue. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. USFD has a P/S ratio of 0.43. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.82.
These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that US Foods is likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, USFD feels like a great value stock at the moment.
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US Foods Holding Corp. (USFD): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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