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Are Investors Undervaluing Jefferies (JEF) Right Now?

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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.

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 rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.

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.

Jefferies (JEF - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. JEF is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 11.52. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 15.31. Over the last 12 months, JEF's Forward P/E has been as high as 22.24 and as low as 11.13, with a median of 15.25.

Investors should also recognize that JEF has a P/B ratio of 0.79. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to 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 1.82. Over the past year, JEF's P/B has been as high as 0.79 and as low as 0.36, with a median of 0.50.

Value investors also love the P/S ratio, which is calculated by simply dividing a stock's price with the company's sales. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. JEF has a P/S ratio of 1.2. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 2.43.

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


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