Are Investors Undervaluing Luther Burbank (LBC) Right Now?

The proven Zacks Rank system focuses on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find winning stocks. Nevertheless, we know that our readers all have their own perspectives, so we are always looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong picks.

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 Luther Burbank (LBC). LBC 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 9.60, which compares to its industry's average of 12.80. Over the past 52 weeks, LBC's Forward P/E has been as high as 10.35 and as low as 7.38, with a median of 8.78.

Investors should also recognize that LBC has a P/B ratio of 0.89. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against 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 2.51. Over the past 12 months, LBC's P/B has been as high as 1.16 and as low as 0.86, with a median of 1.02.

Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is is calculated as price divided by sales. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. LBC has a P/S ratio of 2.43. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 2.84.

Finally, investors should note that LBC has a P/CF ratio of 5.49. This metric focuses on a firm's operating cash flow and is often used to find stocks that are undervalued based on the strength of their cash outlook. This company's current P/CF looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 20.89. LBC's P/CF has been as high as 7.76 and as low as 5.22, with a median of 5.83, all within the past year.

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

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