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Should Value Investors Buy Merck KGaA (MKKGY) Stock?

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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 rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.

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 Merck KGaA (MKKGY - Free Report) . MKKGY is currently sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and an A for Value.

MKKGY is also sporting a PEG ratio of 2.94. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. MKKGY's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 3.18. MKKGY's PEG has been as high as 3.08 and as low as 1.40, with a median of 2.03, all within the past year.

Finally, investors should note that MKKGY has a P/CF ratio of 6.31. 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. MKKGY's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 12.87. Within the past 12 months, MKKGY's P/CF has been as high as 16.19 and as low as 5.95, with a median of 6.94.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in Merck KGaA's great Value grade. Still, they help show that the stock is likely being undervalued at the moment. Add this to the strength of its earnings outlook, and we can clearly see that MKKGY is an impressive value stock right now.

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