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Should Value Investors Buy Cardinal Health (CAH) 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.

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 tried-and-true metrics and fundamental analysis to find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.

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 Cardinal Health (CAH - Free Report) . CAH is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock has a Forward P/E ratio of 15.14. This compares to its industry's average Forward P/E of 17.84. CAH's Forward P/E has been as high as 15.59 and as low as 12.37, with a median of 14.08, all within the past year.

Investors will also notice that CAH has a PEG ratio of 1.48. This popular figure is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also considers a company's expected EPS growth rate. CAH's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 1.98. Over the last 12 months, CAH's PEG has been as high as 1.55 and as low as 0.86, with a median of 1.05.

Finally, our model also underscores that CAH has a P/CF ratio of 15.02. 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. CAH's current P/CF looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 18.95. Over the past year, CAH's P/CF has been as high as 29.98 and as low as 13.22, with a median of 18.45.

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


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