Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Is Whirlpool (WHR) a Great Value Stock Right Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

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 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.

Whirlpool (WHR) is a stock many investors are watching right now. WHR is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 8.89 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 9.07. Over the past 52 weeks, WHR's Forward P/E has been as high as 9.86 and as low as 7.45, with a median of 9.11.

We also note that WHR holds a PEG ratio of 1.88. 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. WHR's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 2.23. Over the past 52 weeks, WHR's PEG has been as high as 2.49 and as low as 1.40, with a median of 1.83.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in Whirlpool'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, WHR looks like an impressive value stock at the moment.

Published in