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Are Investors Undervaluing Carnival (CCL) 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, 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.

Carnival (CCL - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. CCL 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 13.91. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 18.05. Over the past 52 weeks, CCL's Forward P/E has been as high as 266.19 and as low as 13.22, with a median of 23.84.

Another notable valuation metric for CCL is its P/B ratio of 2.48. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. CCL's current P/B looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/B of 3.33. Within the past 52 weeks, CCL's P/B has been as high as 3.68 and as low as 1.55, with a median of 2.43.

Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is is calculated as price divided by sales. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. CCL has a P/S ratio of 0.77. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.92.

Finally, investors should note that CCL has a P/CF ratio of 7.83. This figure highlights a company's operating cash flow and can be used to find firms that are undervalued when considering their impressive cash outlook. CCL's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 20.93. CCL's P/CF has been as high as 26.20 and as low as -25.08, with a median of -4.44, all within the past year.

Another great Leisure and Recreation Services stock you could consider is Six Flags Entertainment (SIX - Free Report) , which is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value Score of A.

Six Flags Entertainment sports a P/B ratio of -2.27 as well; this compares to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 3.33. In the past 52 weeks, SIX's P/B has been as high as -1.74, as low as -2.66, with a median of -2.17.

These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Carnival and Six Flags Entertainment are likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, CCL and SIX feels like a great value stock at the moment.


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