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Should Value Investors Buy International Consolidated Airlines Group (ICAGY) Stock?

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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.

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.

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 company to watch right now is International Consolidated Airlines Group (ICAGY - Free Report) . ICAGY is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 5.05, which compares to its industry's average of 7.54. Over the past year, ICAGY's Forward P/E has been as high as 26.44 and as low as 5.05, with a median of 9.55.

We also note that ICAGY holds a PEG ratio of 0.10. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. ICAGY's industry has an average PEG of 0.23 right now. ICAGY's PEG has been as high as 0.14 and as low as 0.10, with a median of 0.13, all within the past year.

Investors should also recognize that ICAGY has a P/B ratio of 1.69. 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. This stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 4.27. Over the past year, ICAGY's P/B has been as high as 1.95 and as low as 1.09, with a median of 1.60.

Investors could also keep in mind United Airlines (UAL - Free Report) , an Transportation - Airline stock with a Zacks Rank of # 1 (Strong Buy) and Value grade of A.

Shares of United Airlines are currently trading at a forward earnings multiple of 4.32 and a PEG ratio of 0.10 compared to its industry's P/E and PEG ratios of 7.54 and 0.23, respectively.

UAL's Forward P/E has been as high as 18.44 and as low as 4.32, with a median of 5.99. During the same time period, its PEG ratio has been as high as 0.11, as low as 0.10, with a median of 0.11.

United Airlines sports a P/B ratio of 2.11 as well; this compares to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 4.27. In the past 52 weeks, UAL's P/B has been as high as 3.32, as low as 1.76, with a median of 2.39.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in International Consolidated Airlines Group and United Airlines'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 ICAGY and UAL is an impressive value stock right now.


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