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Are Investors Undervaluing LCNB (LCNB) 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.

Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of market. Value investors use tried-and-true metrics and fundamental analysis to find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.

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 stock to keep an eye on is LCNB (LCNB - Free Report) . LCNB is currently sporting a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is LCNB's P/B ratio of 0.86. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. LCNB's current P/B looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/B of 1.09. Over the past year, LCNB's P/B has been as high as 0.99 and as low as 0.75, with a median of 0.83.

Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio 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. LCNB has a P/S ratio of 1.73. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.81.

Finally, investors will want to recognize that LCNB has a P/CF ratio of 11.20. This data point considers a firm's operating cash flow and is frequently used to find companies that are undervalued when considering their solid cash outlook. LCNB's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 16.27. LCNB's P/CF has been as high as 29.50 and as low as 9.93, with a median of 14.60, all within the past year.

Another great Banks - Northeast stock you could consider is Shore Bancshares (SHBI - Free Report) , which is a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) stock with a Value Score of A.

Furthermore, Shore Bancshares holds a P/B ratio of 1.02 and its industry's price-to-book ratio is 1.09. SHBI's P/B has been as high as 1.09, as low as 0.71, with a median of 0.93 over the past 12 months.

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


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