Should Value Investors Buy CNO Financial Group (CNO) Stock?

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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.

Looking at the history of these trends, perhaps none is more beloved than value investing. This strategy simply looks to identify companies that are being undervalued by the broader 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 company to watch right now is CNO Financial Group (CNO). CNO is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A.

We should also highlight that CNO has a P/B ratio of 1.61. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. CNO's current P/B looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/B of 2.65. CNO's P/B has been as high as 2.13 and as low as 1.15, with a median of 1.40, over the past year.

Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock's price with the company's revenue. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. CNO has a P/S ratio of 0.76. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.94.

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

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