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Should Value Investors Buy Global Payments (GPN) 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 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 company value investors might notice is Global Payments (GPN - Free Report) . GPN is currently holding a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 6.5. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 17.09. Over the last 12 months, GPN's Forward P/E has been as high as 9.68 and as low as 5.29, with a median of 7.63.

GPN is also sporting a PEG ratio of 0.72. This popular figure is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also considers a company's expected EPS growth rate. GPN's industry currently sports an average PEG of 1.05. Within the past year, GPN's PEG has been as high as 0.84 and as low as 0.52, with a median of 0.72.

Finally, our model also underscores that GPN has a P/CF ratio of 6.37. 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. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 13.11. Over the past year, GPN's P/CF has been as high as 9.07 and as low as 4.69, with a median of 6.84.

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

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