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Is Popular (BPOP) a Great Value Stock 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.

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.

Popular (BPOP - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. BPOP is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 9.64, while its industry has an average P/E of 11.67. Over the past year, BPOP's Forward P/E has been as high as 14.80 and as low as 8.96, with a median of 9.66.

Investors should also recognize that BPOP has a P/B ratio of 1.09. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against 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 1.83. BPOP's P/B has been as high as 1.10 and as low as 0.65, with a median of 0.93, over the past year.

Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock's price with the company's revenue. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. BPOP has a P/S ratio of 2.24. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 3.06.

Finally, investors should note that BPOP has a P/CF ratio of 13.45. 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. BPOP's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 13.56. BPOP's P/CF has been as high as 35.03 and as low as 11.83, with a median of 16.56, 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 Popular is likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, BPOP feels like a great value stock at the moment.


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