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Should Value Investors Buy These Retail-Wholesale Stocks?

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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.

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 MarineMax (HZO - Free Report) . HZO is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 6.14. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 16.97. Over the past 52 weeks, HZO's Forward P/E has been as high as 14 and as low as 5.69, with a median of 7.84.

Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is is calculated as price divided by sales. This is a popular metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement, so they are often considered a better performance indicator. HZO has a P/S ratio of 0.49. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.74.

Finally, investors should note that HZO has a P/CF ratio of 5.93. 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. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 17.80. Over the past year, HZO's P/CF has been as high as 13.67 and as low as 5.16, with a median of 7.45.

If you're looking for another solid Retail - Miscellaneous value stock, take a look at Itochu (ITOCY - Free Report) . ITOCY is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value score of A.

Shares of Itochu currently holds a Forward P/E ratio of 8.68, and its PEG ratio is 0.57. In comparison, its industry sports average P/E and PEG ratios of 16.97 and 0.60.

Over the last 12 months, ITOCY's P/E has been as high as 11.36, as low as 6.76, with a median of 8.14, and its PEG ratio has been as high as 3.07, as low as 0.34, with a median of 0.53.

Itochu also has a P/B ratio of 1.36 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 9.39. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 1.44, as low as 1.15, with a median of 1.26.

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


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