At a time when volatility strikes every second day, investors often rely on value investing rather than other options like growth or momentum. As soon as other investors start selling their stocks at a cheaper rate in times of market uncertainty, value investors take this as an opportunity to pick good stocks at a discounted price.

Several stocks that have surged significantly in the recent past have shown the overwhelming success of this pure-play investment strategy. Here, we discuss four such stocks — Halozyme Therapeutics (HALO Quick QuoteHALO - Free Report) , Avnet, Inc. (AVT Quick QuoteAVT - Free Report) , BILL Holdings, Inc. (BILL Quick QuoteBILL - Free Report) and Venture Global, Inc. (VG Quick QuoteVG - Free Report) .

However, this apparently simple value investment technique has some drawbacks and not understanding the strategy properly may often lead to “value traps.” In such a situation, these value picks start to underperform over the long run as the temporary problems, which once drove the share price down, turn out to be persistent.

There are many value investment yardsticks, such as dividend yield, P/E or P/B, which are simple and can single out whether a stock is trading at a discount.

However, for investors looking to escape such value traps, it is also vital to determine where the stock would be headed in the next 12 to 24 months. Warren Buffett advises these investors to focus on the earnings growth potential of a stock. This is where lies the importance of a not-so-popular value investing metric, the PEG ratio.

PEG Ratio at a Glance

The PEG ratio is defined as (Price/ Earnings)/Earnings Growth Rate

A low PEG ratio is always better for value investors.

While P/E alone fails to identify a true value stock, PEG helps find the intrinsic value of a stock.

There are some drawbacks to using the PEG ratio. It doesn’t consider the very common situation of changing growth rates, such as the forecast of the first three years at a very high growth rate, followed by a sustainable but lower growth rate over the long term.

Hence, PEG-based investing can turn out to be even more rewarding if some other relevant parameters are also taken into consideration.

Here are some of the screening criteria for a winning strategy:

PEG Ratio less than X Industry Median

P/E Ratio (using F1) less than X Industry Median (for more accurate valuation purposes)

Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy) (Whether good market conditions or bad, stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or 2 have a proven history of success.)

Market Capitalization greater than $1 billion (This helps us to focus on companies that have strong liquidity.)

Average 20-Day Volume greater than 50,000 (A substantial trading volume ensures that the stock is easily tradable.)

Percentage Change F1 Earnings Estimate Revisions (4 Weeks) greater than 5% (Upward estimate revisions add to the optimism, suggesting further bullishness.)

Value Score of less than or equal to B: Our research shows that stocks with a Style Score of A or B when combined with a Zacks Rank #1, 2 or 3 (Hold) offer the best upside potential. 

Our PEG-Driven Picks

Here are four stocks that qualified the screening:

Halozyme: It develops oncology treatments and licenses its ENHANZE drug-delivery technology, which enables subcutaneous formulations of medicines for partners including Roche, Takeda, J&J, AbbVie, Lilly and Bristol Myers. The company earns royalties and product revenues from partnered drugs using ENHANZE, which is based on its patented recombinant human hyaluronidase enzyme (rHuPH20).

Halozyme currently has a Zacks Rank #2 and a Value Score of B. HALO also has an impressive five-year expected growth rate of 32%.

Avnet: Phoenix, AZ-based Avnet is a global distributor of electronic components and computer products, serving OEMs, EMS providers, ODMs and resellers across more than 140 countries. Its two segments, Electronic Components and Farnell, distribute semiconductors and IP&E devices while providing supply-chain management, inventory replenishment, engineering design, integration and assembly services.

Avnet currently has a Zacks Rank #1 and a Value Score of B. AVT also has an impressive five-year expected growth rate of 31.3%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

BILL: San Jose, CA-based BILL Holdings provides an AI-powered financial operations platform for small and midsize businesses, automating accounts payable, accounts receivable, payments, expenses, procurement and cash-flow forecasting. Its platform integrates accounting systems and serves a network of about 9.2 million members, with capabilities expanded through its Finmark, Divvy and Invoice2go acquisitions.

Apart from a discounted PEG and P/E, BILL currently has a Zacks Rank #1 and a Value Score of B. BILL has a long-term expected growth rate of 30%.

Venture Global: Based in Arlington, VA, Venture Global develops LNG export projects along the U.S. Gulf Coast and generates revenues through long-term sales agreements and spot LNG cargoes. Its Calcasieu Pass Project, featuring 18 modular liquefaction trains, began commercial operations in April 2025 and exported 38 cargoes in the first quarter of 2026.

VG has a Zacks Rank #1 and a Value Score of B. Venture Global also has an impressive five-year expected growth rate of 14.9%.