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Should Value Investors Buy CNA Financial (CNA) Stock?

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Here at Zacks, we focus on our proven ranking system, which places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, to find winning stocks. But we also understand that investors develop their own strategies, so we are constantly looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong companies for our readers.

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.

Luckily, Zacks has developed its own Style Scores system in an effort to find stocks with specific traits. Value investors will be interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with both "A" grades in the Value category and high Zacks Ranks are among the strongest value stocks on the market right now.

One company to watch right now is CNA Financial (CNA - Free Report) . CNA is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy) and an A for Value. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 8.84, while its industry has an average P/E of 25.75. Over the past 52 weeks, CNA's Forward P/E has been as high as 10.90 and as low as 8.36, with a median of 8.97.

Investors should also note that CNA holds a PEG ratio of 1.77. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. CNA's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 2.40. Over the past 52 weeks, CNA's PEG has been as high as 2.18 and as low as 1.67, with a median of 1.79.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is CNA's P/B ratio of 1.34. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with 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 1.49. Over the past 12 months, CNA's P/B has been as high as 1.38 and as low as 1.13, with a median of 1.25.

Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is is calculated as price divided by sales. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. CNA has a P/S ratio of 0.89. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.12.

Another great Insurance - Property and Casualty stock you could consider is The Travelers Companies (TRV - Free Report) , which is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value Score of A.

The Travelers Companies is trading at a forward earnings multiple of 11.53 at the moment, with a PEG ratio of 1.13. This compares to its industry's average P/E of 25.75 and average PEG ratio of 2.40.

Over the past year, TRV's P/E has been as high as 17.36, as low as 10.11, with a median of 11.35; its PEG ratio has been as high as 2.39, as low as 0.99, with a median of 1.79 during the same time period.

Additionally, The Travelers Companies has a P/B ratio of 2.24 while its industry's price-to-book ratio sits at 1.49. For TRV, this valuation metric has been as high as 2.24, as low as 1.67, with a median of 1.83 over the past year.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in CNA Financial and The Travelers Companies's great Value grade. Still, they help show that the stock is likely being undervalued at the moment. Add this to the strength of its earnings outlook, and we can clearly see that CNA and TRV is an impressive value stock right now.


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