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Should Value Investors Buy Ameriprise Financial (AMP) Stock?

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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, 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.

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.

Ameriprise Financial (AMP - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. AMP is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 10.62. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 12.94. Over the last 12 months, AMP's Forward P/E has been as high as 57.02 and as low as 7.92, with a median of 10.53.

AMP is also sporting a PEG ratio of 0.61. This popular figure is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also considers a company's expected EPS growth rate. AMP's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 0.81. Over the past 52 weeks, AMP's PEG has been as high as 0.77 and as low as 0.58, with a median of 0.65.

Value investors also love the P/S ratio, which is calculated by simply dividing a stock's price with the company's 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. AMP has a P/S ratio of 2.27. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 2.28.

Finally, investors should note that AMP has a P/CF ratio of 12.60. This metric takes into account a company's operating cash flow and can be used to find stocks that are undervalued based on their solid cash outlook. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 26.15. Over the past year, AMP's P/CF has been as high as 15.34 and as low as 7.92, with a median of 10.91.

Janus Henderson Group (JHG - Free Report) may be another strong Financial - Investment Management stock to add to your shortlist. JHG is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value grade of A.

Furthermore, Janus Henderson Group holds a P/B ratio of 0.94 and its industry's price-to-book ratio is 2.60. JHG's P/B has been as high as 1.60, as low as 0.77, with a median of 1 over the past 12 months.

These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Ameriprise Financial and Janus Henderson Group are likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, AMP and JHG feels like a great value stock at the moment.


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