Are Investors Undervaluing Centene (CNC) Right Now?

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.Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of 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.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.Centene (CNC) is a stock many investors are watching right now. CNC is currently sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 12.35, while its industry has an average P/E of 16.35. Over the past year, CNC's Forward P/E has been as high as 13.40 and as low as 4.41, with a median of 8.43. Investors will also notice that CNC has a PEG ratio of 0.82. 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. CNC's industry currently sports an average PEG of 1.36. CNC's PEG has been as high as 0.98 and as low as 0.38, with a median of 0.77, all within the past year.Finally, investors will want to recognize that CNC has a P/CF ratio of 4.74. 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. CNC's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 10.17. Over the past 52 weeks, CNC's P/CF has been as high as 9.93 and as low as 3.76, with a median of 6.53.These are only a few of the key metrics included in Centene'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, CNC looks like an impressive value stock at the moment.Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Centene Corporation (CNC): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks