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Are Investors Undervaluing Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP) 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, 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.

One company to watch right now is Westlake Chemical Partners (WLKP - Free Report) . WLKP 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 12.29. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 16.38. Over the past 52 weeks, WLKP's Forward P/E has been as high as 14.24 and as low as 10.34, with a median of 12.13.

Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock's price with the company's revenue. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. WLKP has a P/S ratio of 0.52. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.3.

Finally, investors will want to recognize that WLKP has a P/CF ratio of 4.20. 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 16.41. Over the past year, WLKP's P/CF has been as high as 5.24 and as low as 3.67, with a median of 4.50.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in Westlake Chemical Partners's strong Value grade, but they help show that the stock is likely undervalued right now. When factoring in the strength of its earnings outlook, WLKP looks like an impressive value stock at the moment.


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