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Are Investors Undervaluing Greif (GEF) 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.

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 rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.

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 stock to keep an eye on is Greif (GEF - Free Report) . GEF is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 9.53, which compares to its industry's average of 13.17. Over the past year, GEF's Forward P/E has been as high as 16.95 and as low as 8.84, with a median of 10.83.

Investors will also notice that GEF has a PEG ratio of 0.95. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. GEF's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 1.29. Over the past 52 weeks, GEF's PEG has been as high as 1.70 and as low as 0.88, with a median of 1.08.

Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock's price with the company's revenue. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. GEF has a P/S ratio of 0.52. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.18.

If you're looking for another solid Containers - Paper and Packaging value stock, take a look at Graphic Packaging Holding Company (GPK - Free Report) . GPK is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value score of A.

Graphic Packaging Holding Company is currently trading with a Forward P/E ratio of 10.18 while its PEG ratio sits at 0.41. Both of the company's metrics compare favorably to its industry's average P/E of 13.17 and average PEG ratio of 1.29.

Over the last 12 months, GPK's P/E has been as high as 17.63, as low as 9.23, with a median of 11.54, and its PEG ratio has been as high as 0.71, as low as 0.37, with a median of 0.45.

Additionally, Graphic Packaging Holding Company has a P/B ratio of 3.38 while its industry's price-to-book ratio sits at 8.67. For GPK, this valuation metric has been as high as 3.52, as low as 2.84, with a median of 3.20 over the past year.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in Greif and Graphic Packaging Holding Company'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 GEF and GPK is an impressive value stock right now.


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