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.

Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of 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.

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 to watch right now is IBM (IBM Quick QuoteIBM - Free Report) . IBM is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 12.86, while its industry has an average P/E of 14.98. IBM's Forward P/E has been as high as 13.34 and as low as 9.49, with a median of 10.86, all within the past year.

Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock's price with the company's revenue. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. IBM has a P/S ratio of 1.78. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 2.54.

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