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Is Alaska Air Group (ALK) Stock Undervalued Right Now?

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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 a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.

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 company to watch right now is Alaska Air Group (ALK - Free Report) . ALK is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 8.33 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 15.62. Over the past 52 weeks, ALK's Forward P/E has been as high as 71.73 and as low as -27.58, with a median of 9.84.

Another notable valuation metric for ALK is its P/B ratio of 1.44. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against 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 4.16. Over the past year, ALK's P/B has been as high as 2.11 and as low as 1.29, with a median of 1.68.

Finally, investors will want to recognize that ALK has a P/CF ratio of 12.18. 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. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 18.16. Over the past year, ALK's P/CF has been as high as 18.55 and as low as 5.63, with a median of 8.55.

If you're looking for another solid Transportation - Airline value stock, take a look at Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion, B. de C.V (VLRS - Free Report) . VLRS is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value score of A.

Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion, B. de C.V also has a P/B ratio of 4.22 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 4.16. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 11.12, as low as 3.69, with a median of 5.95.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in Alaska Air Group and Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion, B. de C.V'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 ALK and VLRS is an impressive value stock right now.


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Alaska Air Group, Inc. (ALK) - free report >>

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