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Is H&E Equipment Services (HEES) Stock Undervalued Right Now?

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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 rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.

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 to watch right now is H&E Equipment Services (HEES - Free Report) . HEES is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 9.87. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 13.62. Over the last 12 months, HEES's Forward P/E has been as high as 13.82 and as low as 7.96, with a median of 10.34.

We also note that HEES holds a PEG ratio of 0.74. 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. HEES's industry currently sports an average PEG of 1.07. Within the past year, HEES's PEG has been as high as 1.39 and as low as 0.39, with a median of 0.86.

We should also highlight that HEES has a P/B ratio of 3.58. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. HEES's current P/B looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/B of 5.75. HEES's P/B has been as high as 5.05 and as low as 2.85, with a median of 3.68, over the past year.

Finally, investors should note that HEES has a P/CF ratio of 3.15. 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. HEES's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 9.78. Over the past 52 weeks, HEES's P/CF has been as high as 4.63 and as low as 2.53, with a median of 3.25.

Investors could also keep in mind Komatsu (KMTUY - Free Report) , an Manufacturing - Construction and Mining stock with a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) and Value grade of A.

Shares of Komatsu currently holds a Forward P/E ratio of 9.67, and its PEG ratio is 1.16. In comparison, its industry sports average P/E and PEG ratios of 13.62 and 1.07.

Over the past year, KMTUY's P/E has been as high as 11.91, as low as 8.06, with a median of 10.72; its PEG ratio has been as high as 2.28, as low as 0.82, with a median of 0.86 during the same time period.

Komatsu also has a P/B ratio of 1.24 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 5.75. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 1.42, as low as 1.06, with a median of 1.25.

These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that H&E Equipment Services and Komatsu are likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, HEES and KMTUY feels like a great value stock at the moment.


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