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Are Investors Undervaluing Preferred Apartment Communities (APTS) Right Now?

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The proven Zacks Rank system focuses on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find winning stocks. Nevertheless, we know that our readers all have their own perspectives, so we are always looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong picks.

Looking at the history of these trends, perhaps none is more beloved than value investing. This strategy simply looks to identify companies that are being undervalued by the broader market. Value investors use a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.

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 Preferred Apartment Communities . APTS is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 7.22 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 17.70. Over the last 12 months, APTS's Forward P/E has been as high as 9.97 and as low as 5.22, with a median of 8.75.

APTS is also sporting a PEG ratio of 1.21. 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. APTS's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 3.21. Over the last 12 months, APTS's PEG has been as high as 1.42 and as low as 1.21, with a median of 1.35.

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

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