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Are Investors Undervaluing Group 1 Automotive (GPI) Right Now?

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The proven Zacks Rank system focuses on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find winning stocks. Nevertheless, we know that our readers all have their own perspectives, so we are always looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong picks.

Of these, value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. Value investors use a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.

In addition to the Zacks Rank, investors looking for stocks with specific traits can utilize our Style Scores system. Of course, value investors will be most interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with "A" grades for Value and high Zacks Ranks are among the best value stocks available at any given moment.

One company value investors might notice is Group 1 Automotive (GPI - Free Report) . GPI is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 9.30, which compares to its industry's average of 10.74. Over the past 52 weeks, GPI's Forward P/E has been as high as 9.75 and as low as 5.56, with a median of 7.40.

GPI is also sporting a PEG ratio of 1.57. 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. GPI's industry currently sports an average PEG of 1.64. Over the past 52 weeks, GPI's PEG has been as high as 4.15 and as low as 1.15, with a median of 1.67.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is GPI's P/B ratio of 1.59. 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 stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 1.68. Over the past 12 months, GPI's P/B has been as high as 1.64 and as low as 0.82, with a median of 1.19.

Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is is calculated as price divided by sales. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. GPI has a P/S ratio of 0.16. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.27.

Finally, our model also underscores that GPI has a P/CF ratio of 7.95. This data point considers a firm's operating cash flow and is frequently used to find companies that are undervalued when considering their solid cash outlook. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 8.60. Over the past year, GPI's P/CF has been as high as 8.24 and as low as 3.11, with a median of 5.83.

These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Group 1 Automotive is likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, GPI feels like a great value stock at the moment.


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