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Are Investors Undervaluing Ingredion (INGR) 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.

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.

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 holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 13.03 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 18.45. Over the past year, INGR's Forward P/E has been as high as 14.28 and as low as 10.60, with a median of 12.23.

Another notable valuation metric for INGR is its P/B ratio of 2.08. 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 2.41. Over the past 12 months, INGR's P/B has been as high as 2.16 and as low as 1.65, with a median of 1.86.

Value investors also love the P/S ratio, which is calculated by simply dividing a stock's price with the company's sales. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. INGR has a P/S ratio of 0.84. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.08.

Finally, investors should note that INGR has a P/CF ratio of 9.74. 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. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 18.56. Over the past 52 weeks, INGR's P/CF has been as high as 20.26 and as low as 7.78, with a median of 8.94.

Another great Food - Miscellaneous stock you could consider is Nomad Foods Limited (NOMD - Free Report) , which is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value Score of A.

Nomad Foods Limited also has a P/B ratio of 1.13 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 2.41. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 1.69, as low as 0.85, with a median of 1.28.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in Ingredion and Nomad Foods Limited strong Value grade, but they help show that the stocks are likely undervalued right now. When factoring in the strength of its earnings outlook, INGR and NOMD look like an impressive value stock at the moment.


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