The proven Zacks Rank system focuses on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find winning stocks. Nevertheless, we know that our readers all have their own perspectives, so we are always looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong picks.
Of these, perhaps no stock market trend is more popular than value investing, which is a strategy that has proven to be successful in all sorts of market environments. Value investors use tried-and-true metrics and fundamental analysis to find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.
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.
One stock to keep an eye on is American Public Education (APEI). APEI is currently holding a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A.
Investors should also recognize that APEI has a P/B ratio of 1.99. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with 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 3.49. Over the past year, APEI's P/B has been as high as 2.01 and as low as 0.87, with a median of 1.44.
Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is calculated as price divided by sales. This is a popular metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement, so they are often considered a better performance indicator. APEI has a P/S ratio of 0.87. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.62.
These are only a few of the key metrics included in American Public Education'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, APEI looks like an impressive value stock at the moment.
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American Public Education, Inc. (APEI): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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