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Is Ingredion (INGR) Stock Undervalued Right Now?

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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.

Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of market. 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 stock to keep an eye on is Ingredion (INGR - Free Report) . INGR is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 11.53 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 18.19. Over the past year, INGR's Forward P/E has been as high as 14.28 and as low as 11.42, with a median of 12.66.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is INGR's P/B ratio of 1.82. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against 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 2.22. Within the past 52 weeks, INGR's P/B has been as high as 2.17 and as low as 1.70, with a median of 1.91.

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. INGR has a P/S ratio of 0.76. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.26.

Finally, investors will want to recognize that INGR has a P/CF ratio of 8.58. This data point considers a firm's operating cash flow and is frequently used to find companies that are undervalued when considering their solid cash outlook. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 17.45. INGR's P/CF has been as high as 20.26 and as low as 8.01, with a median of 16.96, all within the past year.

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


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