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Should Value Investors Buy Chico's FAS (CHS) Stock?

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The proven Zacks Rank system focuses on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find winning stocks. Nevertheless, we know that our readers all have their own perspectives, so we are always looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong picks.

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 tried-and-true metrics and fundamental analysis to find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.

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.

Chico's FAS is a stock many investors are watching right now. CHS is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy) and an A for Value. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 5.08. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 9.88. CHS's Forward P/E has been as high as 18.56 and as low as 4.98, with a median of 10.28, all within the past year.

Another notable valuation metric for CHS is its P/B ratio of 1.96. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This company's current P/B looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/B of 2.39. Over the past 12 months, CHS's P/B has been as high as 4.22 and as low as 1.92, with a median of 2.68.

Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is is calculated as price divided by sales. This is a popular metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement, so they are often considered a better performance indicator. CHS has a P/S ratio of 0.31. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.39.

Finally, investors should note that CHS has a P/CF ratio of 3.78. 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. CHS's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 5.07. CHS's P/CF has been as high as 72.75 and as low as -11.37, with a median of 5.34, all within the past year.

Another great Retail - Apparel and Shoes stock you could consider is Designer Brands (DBI - Free Report) , which is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value Score of A.

Designer Brands also has a P/B ratio of 2.71 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 2.39. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 3.40, as low as 2.01, with a median of 2.60.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in Chico's FAS and Designer Brands'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 CHS and DBI is an impressive value stock right now.


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