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Should Value Investors Buy MidWestOne Financial Group (MOFG) Stock?

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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.

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 company value investors might notice is MidWestOne Financial Group (MOFG - Free Report) . MOFG is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 7.95. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 10.43. Over the past 52 weeks, MOFG's Forward P/E has been as high as 10.70 and as low as 7.33, with a median of 8.94.

Another notable valuation metric for MOFG is its P/B ratio of 0.95. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 2. Over the past year, MOFG's P/B has been as high as 1.04 and as low as 0.83, with a median of 0.93.

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 popular metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement, so they are often considered a better performance indicator. MOFG has a P/S ratio of 2.17. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 2.96.

Finally, our model also underscores that MOFG has a P/CF ratio of 7.28. 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. MOFG's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 19.35. Over the past year, MOFG's P/CF has been as high as 7.92 and as low as 6.28, with a median of 6.98.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in MidWestOne Financial Group'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, MOFG looks like an impressive value stock at the moment.


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