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Should Value Investors Buy Magellan Health (MGLN) 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.

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.

Zacks has developed the innovative Style Scores system to highlight stocks with specific traits. For example, value investors will be interested in stocks with great grades in the "Value" category. When paired with a high Zacks Rank, "A" grades in the Value category are among the strongest value stocks on the market today.

Magellan Health is a stock many investors are watching right now. MGLN is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value.

Investors will also notice that MGLN has a PEG ratio of 0.67. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. MGLN's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 1.15. Over the last 12 months, MGLN's PEG has been as high as 1.67 and as low as 0.62, with a median of 1.23.

Investors should also recognize that MGLN has a P/B ratio of 1.32. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks attractive against its industry's average P/B of 3.51. MGLN's P/B has been as high as 1.78 and as low as 0.97, with a median of 1.23, over 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. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. MGLN has a P/S ratio of 0.23. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.48.

Finally, investors should note that MGLN has a P/CF ratio of 11.74. This figure highlights a company's operating cash flow and can be used to find firms that are undervalued when considering their impressive cash outlook. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 14.10. Within the past 12 months, MGLN's P/CF has been as high as 12.27 and as low as 5.57, with a median of 9.49.

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

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