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Does Hawaiian Holdings (HA) Make a Suitable Value Pick Now?

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Value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. After all, who wouldn’t want to find stocks that are either flying under the radar and are compelling buys, or offer up tantalizing discounts when compared to fair value?

One way to find these companies is by looking at several key metrics and financial ratios, many of which are crucial in the value stock selection process. Let’s put Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. (HA - Free Report) stock into this equation and find out if it is a good choice for value-oriented investors right now, or if investors subscribing to this methodology should look elsewhere for top picks:

PE Ratio

A key metric that value investors always look at is the Price to Earnings Ratio, or PE for short. This shows us how much investors are willing to pay for each dollar of earnings in a given stock, and is easily one of the most popular financial ratios in the world. The best use of the PE ratio is to compare the stock’s current PE ratio with: a) where this ratio has been in the past; b) how it compares to the average for the industry/sector; and c) how it compares to the market as a whole.

On this front, Hawaiian has a trailing twelve months PE ratio of 7.19, as you can see in the chart below:


 

This level actually compares pretty favorably with the market at large, as the PE for the S&P 500 stands at about 20.09. Moreover, the current level is fairly below the highs for this stock over the past five years, suggesting it might be a good entry point.


 
The stock’s PE also compares favorably with its industry’s trailing twelve months PE ratio, which stands at 10.18. At the very least, this indicates that the stock is relatively undervalued right now, compared to its peers.


 
We should also point out that Hawaiian has a forward PE ratio (price relative to this year’s earnings) of 7.48, so it is fair to expect an increase in the company’s share price in the near future.

P/S Ratio

Another key metric to note is the Price/Sales ratio. This approach compares a given stock’s price to its total sales, where a lower reading is generally considered better. Some people like this metric more than other value-focused ones because it looks at sales, something that is far harder to manipulate with accounting tricks than earnings.

Right now, Hawaiian has a P/S ratio of 0.87 which is lower than the S&P 500 average, which comes in at 3.24 right now. Also, as we can see in the chart below, this is somewhat below the highs for this stock in particular over the past few years.



If anything, this suggests some level of undervalued trading—at least compared to historical norms.

Broad Value Outlook

In aggregate, Hawaiian currently has a Zacks Value Style Score of ‘A’, putting it into the top 20% of all stocks we cover from this look. This makes Hawaiian a solid choice for value investors.

What About the Stock Overall?

Though Hawaiian might be a good choice for value investors, there are plenty of other factors to consider before investing in this name. In particular, it is worth noting that the company has a Growth grade of ‘B’ and a Momentum score of ‘C’. This gives HA a Zacks VGM score—or its overarching fundamental grade—of ‘A’. (You can read more about the Zacks Style Scores here >>)

Meanwhile, the company’s recent earnings estimates have been mixed at best. The current year has seen seven upward estimates revision in the past 60 days compared to none downward, while the next year estimate has seen one upward and four downward revisions in the same time frame.

As a result, the current year consensus estimate has increased by 6% in the past two months, while the next year estimate has inched lower by 8.1%. You can see the consensus estimate trend and recent price action for the stock in the chart below:

Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. Price and Consensus

This somewhat mixed trend is why the stock has just a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) and why we are looking for in-line performance from the company in the near term.

Bottom Line

Hawaiian is an inspired choice for value investors, as it is hard to beat its good lineup of statistics on this front. Moreover, a strong industry rank (Top 8% out of more than 250 industries) further supports the growth potential of the stock. In fact, over the past one year, the industry to which it belongs has clearly outperformed the broader market, as you can see below:



So, it might pay for value investors to delve deeper into the company’s prospects, as fundamentals indicate that this stock could be a compelling pick.

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