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Is Jefferies (JEF) a Great Value Stock Right Now?

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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.

Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of market. Value investors use fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large.

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.

One company value investors might notice is Jefferies (JEF - Free Report) . JEF is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value.

Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock's price with the company's revenue. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. JEF has a P/S ratio of 0.83. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.94.

Finally, our model also underscores that JEF has a P/CF ratio of 3.57. 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. JEF's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 6.40. Within the past 12 months, JEF's P/CF has been as high as 7.02 and as low as 3.57, with a median of 6.07.

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


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