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Are Investors Undervaluing Matson (MATX) 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.

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 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 Matson (MATX - Free Report) . MATX is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 13.25 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 36.86. Over the last 12 months, MATX's Forward P/E has been as high as 28.13 and as low as 12.81, with a median of 18.63.

MATX is also sporting a PEG ratio of 2.55. 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. MATX's industry has an average PEG of 3.13 right now.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is MATX's P/B ratio of 3.06. 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 company's current P/B looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/B of 3.94. MATX's P/B has been as high as 3.47 and as low as 1.34, with a median of 2.48, over the past year.

Finally, our model also underscores that MATX has a P/CF ratio of 7.73. 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. MATX's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 20.68. Over the past year, MATX's P/CF has been as high as 8.85 and as low as 4.04, with a median of 6.42.

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


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