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Is Cigna (CI) a Great Value Stock Right Now?

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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, perhaps no stock market trend is more popular than value investing, which is a strategy that has proven to be successful in all sorts of market environments. Value investors use a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.

Luckily, Zacks has developed its own Style Scores system in an effort to find stocks with specific traits. Value investors will be interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with both "A" grades in the Value category and high Zacks Ranks are among the strongest value stocks on the market right now.

One company value investors might notice is Cigna (CI - Free Report) . CI is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A.

CI is also sporting a PEG ratio of 1.03. 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. CI's industry currently sports an average PEG of 1.70. Over the last 12 months, CI's PEG has been as high as 1.09 and as low as 0.78, with a median of 0.92.

Value investors also love the P/S ratio, which is calculated by simply dividing a stock's price with the company's sales. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. CI has a P/S ratio of 0.47. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.94.

Investors could also keep in mind The Hartford Financial Services Group (HIG - Free Report) , an Insurance - Multi line stock with a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) and Value grade of A.

Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group currently holds a Forward P/E ratio of 10.11, and its PEG ratio is 1.44. In comparison, its industry sports average P/E and PEG ratios of 10.79 and 1.70.

HIG's Forward P/E has been as high as 13.31 and as low as 9.35, with a median of 10.43. During the same time period, its PEG ratio has been as high as 1.90, as low as 1.34, with a median of 1.49.

Additionally, The Hartford Financial Services Group has a P/B ratio of 1.38 while its industry's price-to-book ratio sits at 1.61. For HIG, this valuation metric has been as high as 1.44, as low as 1.16, with a median of 1.35 over the past year.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in Cigna and The Hartford Financial Services 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, CI and HIG look like an impressive value stock at the moment.


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