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Are These Finance Stocks a Great Value Stocks Right Now?

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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.

Looking at the history of these trends, perhaps none is more beloved than value investing. This strategy simply looks to identify companies that are being undervalued by the broader 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 to watch right now is Orix Corp Ads (IX - Free Report) . IX is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 9.39 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 12.55. IX's Forward P/E has been as high as 10.48 and as low as 7.62, with a median of 8.67, all within the past year.

Investors will also notice that IX has a PEG ratio of 0.39. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. IX's industry currently sports an average PEG of 0.69. Over the last 12 months, IX's PEG has been as high as 3.61 and as low as 0.38, with a median of 0.64.

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. IX has a P/S ratio of 1.12. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 2.46.

Jefferies Financial Group (JEF - Free Report) may be another strong Financial - Miscellaneous Services stock to add to your shortlist. JEF is a # 1 (Strong Buy) stock with a Value grade of A.

Furthermore, Jefferies Financial Group holds a P/B ratio of 0.89 and its industry's price-to-book ratio is 4.67. JEF's P/B has been as high as 1.05, as low as 0.69, with a median of 0.85 over the past 12 months.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in Orix Corp Ads and Jefferies Financial Group strong Value grade, but they help show that the stocks are likely undervalued right now. When factoring in the strength of its earnings outlook, IX and JEF look like an impressive value stock at the moment.


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