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Should Value Investors Buy Stifel Financial (SF) 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.

Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of market. Value investors use tried-and-true metrics and fundamental analysis to find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.

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.

One company value investors might notice is Stifel Financial (SF - Free Report) . SF is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 10.07. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 11.94. SF's Forward P/E has been as high as 18.19 and as low as 9.74, with a median of 12.27, all within the past year.

Another notable valuation metric for SF is its P/B ratio of 1.42. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks attractive against its industry's average P/B of 2.54. Within the past 52 weeks, SF's P/B has been as high as 1.72 and as low as 1.15, with a median of 1.46.

Finally, we should also recognize that SF has a P/CF ratio of 11.44. This metric focuses on a firm's operating cash flow and is often used to find stocks that are undervalued based on the strength of their cash outlook. SF's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 21.91. SF's P/CF has been as high as 14.28 and as low as 10.63, with a median of 12.39, all within the past year.

These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Stifel Financial is likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, SF feels like a great value stock at the moment.


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