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Is First Community (FCCO) a Great Value Stock Right Now?

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Here at Zacks, we focus on our proven ranking system, which places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, to find winning stocks. But we also understand that investors develop their own strategies, so we are constantly looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong companies for our readers.

Of these, value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. Value investors use tried-and-true metrics and fundamental analysis to find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.

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 value investors might notice is First Community (FCCO - Free Report) . FCCO is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 11.83. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 13.86. FCCO's Forward P/E has been as high as 14.86 and as low as 10.07, with a median of 11.43, all within the past year.

Another notable valuation metric for FCCO is its P/B ratio of 1.15. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus 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 1.99. Over the past year, FCCO's P/B has been as high as 1.21 and as low as 0.90, with a median of 1.11.

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. FCCO has a P/S ratio of 2.64. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 3.45.

Finally, investors will want to recognize that FCCO has a P/CF ratio of 8.48. This metric focuses on a firm's operating cash flow and is often used to find stocks that are undervalued based on the strength of their cash outlook. FCCO's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 18. Over the past year, FCCO's P/CF has been as high as 11.29 and as low as 7.69, with a median of 9.10.

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


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