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Should Value Investors Buy Centene (CNC) 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 rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.

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.

Centene (CNC - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. CNC is currently sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 12.35. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 17.48. Over the past 52 weeks, CNC's Forward P/E has been as high as 13.40 and as low as 4.41, with a median of 8.43.

We also note that CNC holds a PEG ratio of 0.82. 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. CNC's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 0.89. CNC's PEG has been as high as 0.98 and as low as 0.38, with a median of 0.77, 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. CNC has a P/S ratio of 0.15. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.29.

These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Centene is likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, CNC feels like a great value stock at the moment.

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