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Should Value Investors Buy Carnival (CCL) Stock?

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The proven Zacks Rank system focuses on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find winning stocks. Nevertheless, we know that our readers all have their own perspectives, so we are always looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong picks.

Looking at the history of these trends, perhaps none is more beloved than value investing. This strategy simply looks to identify companies that are being undervalued by the broader market. Value investors use a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.

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 value investors might notice is Carnival (CCL - Free Report) . CCL is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 14.42, while its industry has an average P/E of 18.25. CCL's Forward P/E has been as high as 151.53 and as low as 13.22, with a median of 21.02, all within the past year.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is CCL's P/B ratio of 2.64. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against 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 3.09. Over the past year, CCL's P/B has been as high as 3.68 and as low as 1.55, with a median of 2.48.

Value investors also love the P/S ratio, which is calculated by simply dividing a stock's price with the company's sales. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. CCL has a P/S ratio of 0.86. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.03.

Finally, investors should note that CCL has a P/CF ratio of 8.35. This metric focuses on a firm's operating cash flow and is often used to find stocks that are undervalued based on the strength of their cash outlook. This company's current P/CF looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 13.69. CCL's P/CF has been as high as 26.20 and as low as -25.08, with a median of 7.82, all within the past year.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in Carnival'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 CCL is an impressive value stock right now.


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