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Are Investors Undervaluing Earthstone Energy (ESTE) Right Now?

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While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.

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 to watch right now is Earthstone Energy . ESTE is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 2.34, while its industry has an average P/E of 6.28. Over the past 52 weeks, ESTE's Forward P/E has been as high as 9.21 and as low as 1.51, with a median of 3.83.

Investors should also recognize that ESTE has a P/B ratio of 1.25. 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 stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 3.55. Over the past 12 months, ESTE's P/B has been as high as 2 and as low as 0.82, with a median of 1.10.

Finally, we should also recognize that ESTE has a P/CF ratio of 5.09. This metric focuses on a firm's operating cash flow and is often used to find stocks that are undervalued based on the strength of their cash outlook. ESTE's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 8.47. Over the past year, ESTE's P/CF has been as high as 11.06 and as low as 3.44, with a median of 5.23.

Stone Energy (TALO - Free Report) may be another strong Oil and Gas - Exploration and Production - United States stock to add to your shortlist. TALO is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value grade of A.

Stone Energy sports a P/B ratio of 1.94 as well; this compares to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 3.55. In the past 52 weeks, TALO's P/B has been as high as 2.99, as low as 1.05, with a median of 1.69.

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


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