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Should Value Investors Buy Encompass Health (EHC) Stock?

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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, 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 a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.

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.

Encompass Health (EHC - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. EHC is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 18.78. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 20.73. Over the past 52 weeks, EHC's Forward P/E has been as high as 20.79 and as low as 16.26, with a median of 18.65.

We also note that EHC holds a PEG ratio of 1.22. 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. EHC's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 1.63. EHC's PEG has been as high as 1.77 and as low as 1.16, with a median of 1.39, all within the past year.

Investors should also recognize that EHC has a P/B ratio of 3.34. 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 stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 3.58. Over the past year, EHC's P/B has been as high as 3.57 and as low as 2.82, with a median of 3.20.

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


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