Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Should Value Investors Buy Allstate (ALL) Stock?

Read MoreHide Full Article

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, value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. Value investors use tried-and-true metrics and fundamental analysis to find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.

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.

Allstate (ALL - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. ALL is currently sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 9.21. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 26.54. ALL's Forward P/E has been as high as 11.84 and as low as 8.78, with a median of 10.15, all within 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. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. ALL has a P/S ratio of 0.8. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.31.

Finally, our model also underscores that ALL has a P/CF ratio of 8.66. This metric takes into account a company's operating cash flow and can be used to find stocks that are undervalued based on their solid cash outlook. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 12.03. Over the past 52 weeks, ALL's P/CF has been as high as 14.16 and as low as 8.07, with a median of 10.58.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in Allstate's strong Value grade, but they help show that the stock is likely undervalued right now. When factoring in the strength of its earnings outlook, ALL looks like an impressive value stock at the moment.

Zacks' 7 Best Strong Buy Stocks (New Research Report)

Valued at $99, click below to receive our just-released report predicting the 7 stocks that will soar highest in the coming month.

Click Here, It's Really Free

Published in