Is Mercury General (MCY) Stock Undervalued 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.

Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of 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 Mercury General (MCY). MCY is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy) and an A for Value.

Investors should also recognize that MCY has a P/B ratio of 1.33. 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 1.51. Within the past 52 weeks, MCY's P/B has been as high as 1.63 and as low as 0.97, with a median of 1.36.

Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock's price with the company's revenue. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. MCY has a P/S ratio of 0.58. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.92.

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

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