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Are Investors Undervaluing Henry Schein (HSIC) 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.

Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of market. Value investors use a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.

On top of the Zacks Rank, investors can also look at our innovative Style Scores system to find stocks with specific traits. For example, value investors will want to focus on the "Value" category. Stocks with high Zacks Ranks and "A" grades for Value will be some of the highest-quality value stocks on the market today.

One company value investors might notice is Henry Schein (HSIC - Free Report) . HSIC is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 15.22, which compares to its industry's average of 18.66. Over the last 12 months, HSIC's Forward P/E has been as high as 18.40 and as low as 12.89, with a median of 15.38.

Another notable valuation metric for HSIC is its P/B ratio of 2.66. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks attractive against its industry's average P/B of 6.83. Over the past year, HSIC's P/B has been as high as 2.99 and as low as 2.10, with a median of 2.57.

Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock's price with the company's revenue. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. HSIC has a P/S ratio of 0.86. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.07.

Finally, investors should note that HSIC has a P/CF ratio of 15.01. This data point considers a firm's operating cash flow and is frequently used to find companies that are undervalued when considering their solid cash outlook. HSIC's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 25.73. Over the past 52 weeks, HSIC's P/CF has been as high as 16.14 and as low as 10.52, with a median of 12.91.

Value investors will likely look at more than just these metrics, but the above data helps show that Henry Schein is likely undervalued currently. And when considering the strength of its earnings outlook, HSIC sticks out at as one of the market's strongest value stocks.


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