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Are Investors Undervaluing Computer Programs and Systems (CPSI) Right Now?

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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.

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 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 to watch right now is Computer Programs and Systems . CPSI is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A.

Investors will also notice that CPSI has a PEG ratio of 1.14. 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. CPSI's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 2.64. Over the last 12 months, CPSI's PEG has been as high as 1.76 and as low as 1.07, with a median of 1.33.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is CPSI's P/B ratio of 2.42. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This company's current P/B looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/B of 3.06. Over the past year, CPSI's P/B has been as high as 3.35 and as low as 2.32, with a median of 2.95.

Value investors also love the P/S ratio, which is calculated by simply dividing a stock's price with the company's sales. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. CPSI has a P/S ratio of 1.3. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 2.16.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in Computer Programs and Systems'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, CPSI looks like an impressive value stock at the moment.

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