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Are Investors Undervaluing United Microelectronics (UMC) Right Now?

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The proven Zacks Rank system focuses on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find winning stocks. Nevertheless, we know that our readers all have their own perspectives, so we are always looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong picks.

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 to watch right now is United Microelectronics (UMC - Free Report) . UMC is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 8.73. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 18.17. Over the past year, UMC's Forward P/E has been as high as 20.05 and as low as 8.26, with a median of 13.27.

We also note that UMC holds a PEG ratio of 0.30. 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. UMC's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 0.69. Within the past year, UMC's PEG has been as high as 0.90 and as low as 0.28, with a median of 0.66.

Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is is calculated as price divided by sales. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. UMC has a P/S ratio of 2.98. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 3.17.

Finally, investors should note that UMC has a P/CF ratio of 6.45. This figure highlights a company's operating cash flow and can be used to find firms that are undervalued when considering their impressive cash outlook. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 24.49. Over the past 52 weeks, UMC's P/CF has been as high as 10.44 and as low as 6.10, with a median of 8.38.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in United Microelectronics's strong Value grade, but they help show that the stock is likely undervalued right now. When factoring in the strength of its earnings outlook, UMC looks like an impressive value stock at the moment.


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