Should Value Investors Buy British Foods (ASBFY) Stock?

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, value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. 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.

British Foods (ASBFY) is a stock many investors are watching right now. ASBFY is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 16.16. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 17.10. Over the past 52 weeks, ASBFY's Forward P/E has been as high as 19.35 and as low as 14.36, with a median of 17.10.

Investors should also note that ASBFY holds a PEG ratio of 1.75. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. ASBFY's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 2.53. ASBFY's PEG has been as high as 2.98 and as low as 1.62, with a median of 1.94, all within the past year.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is ASBFY's P/B ratio of 1.97. 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. This stock's P/B looks attractive against its industry's average P/B of 3.70. Over the past year, ASBFY's P/B has been as high as 2.45 and as low as 1.64, with a median of 1.98.

Value investors will likely look at more than just these metrics, but the above data helps show that British Foods is likely undervalued currently. And when considering the strength of its earnings outlook, ASBFY sticks out at as one of the market's strongest value stocks.