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Should Value Investors Buy Sonic Automotive (SAH) Stock?

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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 fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large.

In addition to the Zacks Rank, investors looking for stocks with specific traits can utilize our Style Scores system. Of course, value investors will be most interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with "A" grades for Value and high Zacks Ranks are among the best value stocks available at any given moment.

One stock to keep an eye on is Sonic Automotive (SAH - Free Report) . SAH is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 6.28. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 6.46. SAH's Forward P/E has been as high as 8.51 and as low as 4.82, with a median of 6.93, all within the past year.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is SAH's P/B ratio of 1.74. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against 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 2.30. Within the past 52 weeks, SAH's P/B has been as high as 2.48 and as low as 1.46, with a median of 1.99.

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. SAH has a P/S ratio of 0.11. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.31.

Investors could also keep in mind Titan Machinery (TITN - Free Report) , an Automotive - Retail and Whole Sales stock with a Zacks Rank of # 1 (Strong Buy) and Value grade of A.

Titan Machinery also has a P/B ratio of 0.96 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 2.30. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 2.01, as low as 0.94, with a median of 1.32.

These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Sonic Automotive and Titan Machinery are likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, SAH and TITN feels like a great value stock at the moment.


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