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Should Value Investors Buy Information Services Group (III) Stock?

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Here at Zacks, we focus on our proven ranking system, which places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, to find winning stocks. But we also understand that investors develop their own strategies, so we are constantly looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong companies for our readers.

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.

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.

One company value investors might notice is Information Services Group (III - Free Report) . III is currently sporting a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 15.07 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 19.84. Over the last 12 months, III's Forward P/E has been as high as 17.33 and as low as 8.54, with a median of 12.45.

Investors should also note that III holds a PEG ratio of 0.84. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. III's industry currently sports an average PEG of 1.62. Over the past 52 weeks, III's PEG has been as high as 1.20 and as low as 0.59, with a median of 0.79.

Investors should also recognize that III has a P/B ratio of 2.76. 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. This company's current P/B looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/B of 5.24. III's P/B has been as high as 2.84 and as low as 1.52, with a median of 1.86, over the past year.

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 popular metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement, so they are often considered a better performance indicator. III has a P/S ratio of 1.21. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.79.

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


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