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Should Value Investors Buy Air Lease (AL) Stock?

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Here at Zacks, our focus is on the proven Zacks Rank system, which emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find great stocks. Nevertheless, we are always paying attention to the latest value, growth, and momentum trends to underscore strong picks.

Of these, perhaps no stock market trend is more popular than value investing, which is a strategy that has proven to be successful in all sorts of market environments. Value investors rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.

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.

Air Lease (AL - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. AL is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 6.55, while its industry has an average P/E of 12.66. Over the past 52 weeks, AL's Forward P/E has been as high as 9.41 and as low as 1.77, with a median of 6.99.

Investors should also note that AL holds a PEG ratio of 0.43. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. AL's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 0.77. Within the past year, AL's PEG has been as high as 2.94 and as low as 0.19, with a median of 0.77.

We should also highlight that AL has a P/B ratio of 0.58. 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 0.92. Over the past year, AL's P/B has been as high as 0.99 and as low as 0.22, with a median of 0.62.

Finally, we should also recognize that AL has a P/CF ratio of 2.37. This metric takes into account a company's operating cash flow and can be used to find stocks that are undervalued based on their solid cash outlook. AL's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 4.93. Over the past year, AL's P/CF has been as high as 4.24 and as low as 0.90, with a median of 2.54.

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


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