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Is National Bank of Canada (NTIOF) a Great Value Stock Right Now?

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Here at Zacks, our focus is on the proven Zacks Rank system, which emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find great stocks. Nevertheless, we are always paying attention to the latest value, growth, and momentum trends to underscore strong picks.

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 fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large.

Luckily, Zacks has developed its own Style Scores system in an effort to find stocks with specific traits. Value investors will be interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with both "A" grades in the Value category and high Zacks Ranks are among the strongest value stocks on the market right now.

One company value investors might notice is National Bank of Canada (NTIOF - Free Report) . NTIOF is currently holding a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is NTIOF's P/B ratio of 1.94. 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 2.36. Over the past year, NTIOF's P/B has been as high as 2.14 and as low as 1.63, with a median of 1.94.

Finally, investors should note that NTIOF has a P/CF ratio of 13.40. 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. NTIOF's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 18.36. Over the past year, NTIOF's P/CF has been as high as 13.48 and as low as 8.12, with a median of 10.58.

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

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