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Are These Basic Materials Stocks Undervalued Right Now?

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While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.

Of these, value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. Value investors use a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.

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.

One company value investors might notice is Johnson Matthey (JMPLY - Free Report) . JMPLY is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 8.35. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 12.24. Over the past year, JMPLY's Forward P/E has been as high as 18.42 and as low as 8.08, with a median of 11.99.

JMPLY is also sporting a PEG ratio of 0.62. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. JMPLY's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 0.68. Over the past 52 weeks, JMPLY's PEG has been as high as 5.28 and as low as 0.60, with a median of 1.10.

Investors should also recognize that JMPLY has a P/B ratio of 1.45. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against 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 2.44. Within the past 52 weeks, JMPLY's P/B has been as high as 2.64 and as low as 1.40, with a median of 2.29.

Tronox (TROX - Free Report) may be another strong Chemical - Diversified stock to add to your shortlist. TROX is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value grade of A.

Tronox also has a P/B ratio of 1.75 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 2.44. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 2.02, as low as 1.18, with a median of 1.74.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in Johnson Matthey and Tronox's great Value grade. Still, they help show that the stock is likely being undervalued at the moment. Add this to the strength of its earnings outlook, and we can clearly see that JMPLY and TROX is an impressive value stock right now.


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