Are Investors Undervaluing These Finance Stocks Right Now?

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.

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.

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.

One company value investors might notice is Markel (MKL). MKL 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 16.74, which compares to its industry's average of 31.48. Over the past year, MKL's Forward P/E has been as high as 21.02 and as low as 15.84, with a median of 18.87.

We should also highlight that MKL has a P/B ratio of 1.29. 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 1.42. MKL's P/B has been as high as 1.36 and as low as 1.06, with a median of 1.28, over the past year.

If you're looking for another solid Insurance - Property and Casualty value stock, take a look at Stewart Information Services (STC). STC is a # 1 (Strong Buy) stock with a Value score of A.

Furthermore, Stewart Information Services holds a P/B ratio of 1.73 and its industry's price-to-book ratio is 1.42. STC's P/B has been as high as 1.77, as low as 1.22, with a median of 1.46 over the past 12 months.

These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Markel and Stewart Information Services are likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, MKL and STC feels like a great value stock at the moment.

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Markel Corporation (MKL) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Stewart Information Services Corporation (STC) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
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