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Should Value Investors Buy Science Applications International (SAIC) Stock?

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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 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.

Science Applications International (SAIC - Free Report) is a stock many investors are watching right now. SAIC is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 17.30, which compares to its industry's average of 39.44. Over the last 12 months, SAIC's Forward P/E has been as high as 17.94 and as low as 13.35, with a median of 15.57.

Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is is calculated as price divided by 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. SAIC has a P/S ratio of 1. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 2.18.

Finally, investors should note that SAIC has a P/CF ratio of 18.21. 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. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 72.14. SAIC's P/CF has been as high as 18.31 and as low as 9.14, with a median of 11.04, all within the past year.

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


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