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Should Value Investors Buy Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH) Stock?

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Here at Zacks, our focus is on the proven Zacks Rank system, which emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find great stocks. Nevertheless, we are always paying attention to the latest value, growth, and momentum trends to underscore 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 Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH - Free Report) . NCLH is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 10.76, which compares to its industry's average of 16.22. Over the past 52 weeks, NCLH's Forward P/E has been as high as 26.42 and as low as 8.48, with a median of 12.14.

We also note that NCLH holds a PEG ratio of 0.21. 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. NCLH's industry has an average PEG of 0.53 right now. NCLH's PEG has been as high as 0.33 and as low as 0.18, with a median of 0.22, all within the past year.

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. NCLH has a P/S ratio of 0.94. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 0.96.

Finally, we should also recognize that NCLH has a P/CF ratio of 7.15. This data point considers a firm's operating cash flow and is frequently used to find companies that are undervalued when considering their solid cash outlook. This company's current P/CF looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 11.95. Over the past 52 weeks, NCLH's P/CF has been as high as 16.32 and as low as -1,132.79, with a median of 6.95.

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


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