Should Value Investors Buy Assurant (AIZ) Stock?
While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.
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 a variety of methods, including tried-and-true valuation metrics, to find these stocks.
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.
One stock to keep an eye on is Assurant (AIZ). AIZ is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy) and a Value grade of A.
We should also highlight that AIZ has a P/B ratio of 1.99. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This company's current P/B looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/B of 2.62. AIZ's P/B has been as high as 2.01 and as low as 1.31, with a median of 1.61, 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 popular metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement, so they are often considered a better performance indicator. AIZ has a P/S ratio of 0.82. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.96.
These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Assurant is likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, AIZ feels like a great value stock at the moment.
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Assurant, Inc. (AIZ) : Free Stock Analysis Report
