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Is Perdoceo Education (PRDO) Stock Undervalued 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.

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.

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.

Perdoceo Education (PRDO - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. PRDO 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 8.09. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 23.20. PRDO's Forward P/E has been as high as 10.15 and as low as 6.46, with a median of 8.23, all within the past year.

Investors should also note that PRDO holds a PEG ratio of 0.54. 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. PRDO's industry has an average PEG of 1.48 right now. Over the last 12 months, PRDO's PEG has been as high as 0.68 and as low as 0.43, with a median of 0.55.

Another notable valuation metric for PRDO is its P/B ratio of 1.34. 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 company's current P/B looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/B of 3.75. Over the past 12 months, PRDO's P/B has been as high as 1.50 and as low as 1.03, with a median of 1.36.

Investors could also keep in mind Universal Technical Institute (UTI - Free Report) , an Schools stock with a Zacks Rank of # 1 (Strong Buy) and Value grade of A.

Universal Technical Institute is currently trading with a Forward P/E ratio of 19.31 while its PEG ratio sits at 1.29. Both of the company's metrics compare favorably to its industry's average P/E of 23.20 and average PEG ratio of 1.48.

Over the past year, UTI's P/E has been as high as 60.56, as low as 10.57, with a median of 13.65; its PEG ratio has been as high as 4.04, as low as 0.70, with a median of 0.55 during the same time period.

Universal Technical Institute also has a P/B ratio of 2.22 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 3.75. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 2.78, as low as 1.27, with a median of 1.76.

These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Perdoceo Education and Universal Technical Institute are likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, PRDO and UTI feels like a great value stock at the moment.


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