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Are Investors Undervaluing Alaska Air Group (ALK) Right Now?

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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.

Alaska Air Group (ALK - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. ALK is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 7.34, while its industry has an average P/E of 8.71. ALK's Forward P/E has been as high as 10.07 and as low as 6.35, with a median of 8.36, all within the past year.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is ALK's P/B ratio of 1.72. 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 stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 4.83. Within the past 52 weeks, ALK's P/B has been as high as 1.78 and as low as 1.27, with a median of 1.49.

Another great Transportation - Airline stock you could consider is International Consolidated Airlines Group (ICAGY - Free Report) , which is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value Score of A.

Shares of International Consolidated Airlines Group are currently trading at a forward earnings multiple of 6.52 and a PEG ratio of 0.14 compared to its industry's P/E and PEG ratios of 8.71 and 0.29, respectively.

Over the last 12 months, ICAGY's P/E has been as high as 26.44, as low as 6.05, with a median of 9.82, and its PEG ratio has been as high as 0.14, as low as 0.13, with a median of 0.13.

Additionally, International Consolidated Airlines Group has a P/B ratio of 1.09 while its industry's price-to-book ratio sits at 4.83. For ICAGY, this valuation metric has been as high as 1.53, as low as 1.09, with a median of 1.35 over the past year.

Value investors will likely look at more than just these metrics, but the above data helps show that Alaska Air Group and International Consolidated Airlines Group are likely undervalued currently. And when considering the strength of its earnings outlook, ALK and ICAGY sticks out as one of the market's strongest value stocks.


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Alaska Air Group, Inc. (ALK) - free report >>

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