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Are Investors Undervaluing Jefferies (JEF) 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.

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 fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large.

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 value investors might notice is Jefferies (JEF - Free Report) . JEF is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 12.51, while its industry has an average P/E of 14.83. Over the last 12 months, JEF's Forward P/E has been as high as 19.57 and as low as 11.15, with a median of 14.70.

Another notable valuation metric for JEF is its P/B ratio of 0.84. 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 attractive against its industry's average P/B of 1.82. Over the past 12 months, JEF's P/B has been as high as 0.91 and as low as 0.36, with a median of 0.51.

Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is is calculated as price divided by sales. This is a popular metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement, so they are often considered a better performance indicator. JEF has a P/S ratio of 1.09. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 2.52.

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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