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Are Investors Undervaluing ArcBest (ARCB) 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, 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.

ArcBest (ARCB - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. ARCB is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 6.92 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 17.13. ARCB's Forward P/E has been as high as 97.24 and as low as 5.26, with a median of 9.99, all within the past year.

Investors should also recognize that ARCB has a P/B ratio of 2.19. 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 attractive against its industry's average P/B of 3.81. ARCB's P/B has been as high as 3.30 and as low as 1.60, with a median of 2.19, over the past year.

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. ARCB has a P/S ratio of 0.44. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.12.

Finally, our model also underscores that ARCB has a P/CF ratio of 5.85. This metric takes into account a company's operating cash flow and can be used to find stocks that are undervalued based on their solid cash outlook. ARCB's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 12.55. ARCB's P/CF has been as high as 11.12 and as low as 4.45, with a median of 6.94, all within the past year.

If you're looking for another solid Transportation - Truck value stock, take a look at KnightSwift Transportation (KNX - Free Report) . KNX is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value score of A.

Shares of KnightSwift Transportation are currently trading at a forward earnings multiple of 10.57 and a PEG ratio of 0.70 compared to its industry's P/E and PEG ratios of 17.13 and 1.18, respectively.

Over the last 12 months, KNX's P/E has been as high as 13.50, as low as 8.56, with a median of 11.05, and its PEG ratio has been as high as 0.90, as low as 0.57, with a median of 0.74.

KnightSwift Transportation also has a P/B ratio of 1.31 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 3.81. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 1.62, as low as 1.09, with a median of 1.36.

Value investors will likely look at more than just these metrics, but the above data helps show that ArcBest and KnightSwift Transportation are likely undervalued currently. And when considering the strength of its earnings outlook, ARCB and KNX sticks out as one of the market's strongest value stocks.


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Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (KNX) - free report >>

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