Should Value Investors Buy Popular (BPOP) Stock?

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, 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.

Popular (BPOP) is a stock many investors are watching right now. BPOP is currently sporting a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 9.73, which compares to its industry's average of 10.75. BPOP's Forward P/E has been as high as 11.26 and as low as 7.81, with a median of 9.43, all within the past year.

BPOP is also sporting a PEG ratio of 0.57. 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. BPOP's industry currently sports an average PEG of 1.15. Over the last 12 months, BPOP's PEG has been as high as 0.92 and as low as 0.50, with a median of 0.60.

Another notable valuation metric for BPOP is its P/B ratio of 1.41. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. BPOP's current P/B looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/B of 1.88. Within the past 52 weeks, BPOP's P/B has been as high as 1.41 and as low as 0.98, with a median of 1.25.

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. BPOP has a P/S ratio of 1.85. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 2.2.

Finally, our model also underscores that BPOP has a P/CF ratio of 15.93. This metric takes into account a company's operating cash flow and can be used to find stocks that are undervalued based on their solid cash outlook. BPOP's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 15.96. Within the past 12 months, BPOP's P/CF has been as high as 19.54 and as low as 11.90, with a median of 16.34.

Another great Banks - Southeast stock you could consider is Chemung Financial Corp (CHMG), which is a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy) stock with a Value Score of A.

Chemung Financial Corp also has a P/B ratio of 1.07 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 1.88. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 1.19, as low as 0.85, with a median of 1.05.

Value investors will likely look at more than just these metrics, but the above data helps show that Popular and Chemung Financial Corp are likely undervalued currently. And when considering the strength of its earnings outlook, BPOP and CHMG sticks out as one of the market's strongest value stocks.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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