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 use a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.
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 Granite Construction (GVA). GVA is currently sporting a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 15.98 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 17.77. Over the past 52 weeks, GVA's Forward P/E has been as high as 17.80 and as low as 12.22, with a median of 14.55.
Another notable valuation metric for GVA is its P/B ratio of 4.32. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. GVA's current P/B looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/B of 4.98. Over the past 12 months, GVA's P/B has been as high as 4.37 and as low as 2.87, with a median of 3.64.
Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is calculated as price divided by sales. This is a preferred metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. GVA has a P/S ratio of 0.99. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.01.
Vinci (VCISY) may be another strong Building Products - Heavy Construction stock to add to your shortlist. VCISY is a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) stock with a Value grade of A.
Vinci is currently trading with a Forward P/E ratio of 12.61 while its PEG ratio sits at 1.83. Both of the company's metrics compare favorably to its industry's average P/E of 17.77 and average PEG ratio of 0.48.
Over the last 12 months, VCISY's P/E has been as high as 14.64, as low as 10.71, with a median of 12.65, and its PEG ratio has been as high as 2.84, as low as 1.75, with a median of 2.02.
Vinci also has a P/B ratio of 2.18 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 4.98. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 2.40, as low as 1.60, with a median of 2.02.
These are just a handful of the figures considered in Granite Construction and Vinci's great Value grade. Still, they help show that the stock is likely being undervalued at the moment. Add this to the strength of its earnings outlook, and we can clearly see that GVA and VCISY is an impressive value stock right now.
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Granite Construction Incorporated (GVA): Free Stock Analysis Report
Vinci SA (VCISY): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).