Yahoo Finance Are Investors Undervaluing Charles River Associates (CRAI) 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.
Of these, perhaps no stock market trend is more popular than value investing, which is a strategy that has proven to be successful in all sorts of market environments. Value investors rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.
On top of the Zacks Rank, investors can also look at our innovative Style Scores system to find stocks with specific traits. For example, value investors will want to focus on the "Value" category. Stocks with high Zacks Ranks and "A" grades for Value will be some of the highest-quality value stocks on the market today.
One stock to keep an eye on is Charles River Associates (CRAI). CRAI is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 19.05, which compares to its industry's average of 24.21. CRAI's Forward P/E has been as high as 20.25 and as low as 14.50, with a median of 16.64, all within the past year.
We also note that CRAI holds a PEG ratio of 1.34. 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. CRAI's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 2.24. Over the last 12 months, CRAI's PEG has been as high as 1.42 and as low as 0.97, with a median of 1.12.
Another notable valuation metric for CRAI is its P/B ratio of 4.14. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 5.97. Within the past 52 weeks, CRAI's P/B has been as high as 4.41 and as low as 2.78, with a median of 3.21.
Value investors also love the P/S ratio, which is calculated by simply dividing a stock's price with the company's sales. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. CRAI has a P/S ratio of 1.39. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.84.
Finally, we should also recognize that CRAI has a P/CF ratio of 12.20. 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. CRAI's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 15.92. Over the past year, CRAI's P/CF has been as high as 12.98 and as low as 8.70, with a median of 9.78.
Information Services Group (III) may be another strong Consulting Services stock to add to your shortlist. III is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value grade of A.
Shares of Information Services Group currently holds a Forward P/E ratio of 10.85, and its PEG ratio is 0.64. In comparison, its industry sports average P/E and PEG ratios of 24.21 and 2.24.
Over the last 12 months, III's P/E has been as high as 19.48, as low as 10.45, with a median of 14.50, and its PEG ratio has been as high as 1.08, as low as 0.60, with a median of 0.81.
Information Services Group also has a P/B ratio of 2.55 compared to its industry's price-to-book ratio of 5.97. Over the past year, its P/B ratio has been as high as 4.25, as low as 2.39, with a median of 3.15.
These are just a handful of the figures considered in Charles River Associates and Information Services Group's great Value grade. Still, they help show that the stock is likely being undervalued at the moment. Add this to the strength of its earnings outlook, and we can clearly see that CRAI and III is an impressive value stock right now.
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Charles River Associates (CRAI) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Information Services Group, Inc. (III) : Free Stock Analysis Report
