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.
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.
Luckily, Zacks has developed its own Style Scores system in an effort to find stocks with specific traits. Value investors will be interested in the system’s “Value” category. Stocks with both “A” grades in the Value category and high Zacks Ranks are among the strongest value stocks on the market right now.
One company to watch right now is
Oceaneering International (OII)
. OII is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value.
Another valuation metric that we should highlight is OII’s P/B ratio of 2.33. The P/B ratio pits a stock’s market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock’s P/B looks attractive against its industry’s average P/B of 2.93. Over the past 12 months, OII’s P/B has been as high as 3.31 and as low as 1.50, with a median of 2.24.
Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock’s price with the company’s revenue. This is a popular metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement, so they are often considered a better performance indicator. OII has a P/S ratio of 0.74. This compares to its industry’s average P/S of 0.89.
Investors could also keep in mind
Ranger Energy Services (RNGR)
, an Oil and Gas – Field Services stock with a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) and Value grade of A.
Additionally, Ranger Energy Services has a P/B ratio of 1.06 while its industry’s price-to-book ratio sits at 2.93. For RNGR, this valuation metric has been as high as 1.17, as low as 0.37, with a median of 0.75 over the past year.
These are only a few of the key metrics included in Oceaneering International and Ranger Energy Services strong Value grade, but they help show that the stocks are likely undervalued right now. When factoring in the strength of its earnings outlook, OII and RNGR look like an impressive value stock at the moment.
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