Are Investors Undervaluing Patterson Cos. (PDCO) Right Now?

PDCO

While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.

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 a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.

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.

One company to watch right now is Patterson Cos. (PDCO - Free Report) . PDCO is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 17.92, which compares to its industry's average of 18.68. PDCO's Forward P/E has been as high as 18.40 and as low as 9.13, with a median of 13.65, all within the past year.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is PDCO's P/B ratio of 2.93. 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 4.40. Over the past 12 months, PDCO's P/B has been as high as 2.95 and as low as 0.85, with a median of 1.33.

Finally, we should also recognize that PDCO has a P/CF ratio of 13.60. 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. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 35.19. Over the past year, PDCO's P/CF has been as high as 17.04 and as low as 7.56, with a median of 11.12.

Value investors will likely look at more than just these metrics, but the above data helps show that Patterson Cos. Is likely undervalued currently. And when considering the strength of its earnings outlook, PDCO sticks out at as one of the market's strongest value stocks.

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