Is Prudential Financial (PRU) a Suitable Value Pick Now?

Value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. After all, who wouldn’t want to find stocks that are either flying under the radar and are compelling buys, or offer up tantalizing discounts when compared to fair value?

One way to find these companies is by looking at several key metrics and financial ratios, many of which are crucial in the value stock selection process. Let’s put Prudential Financial, Inc. PRU stock into this equation and find out if it is a good choice for value-oriented investors right now, or if investors subscribing to this methodology should look elsewhere for top picks:

PE Ratio

A key metric that value investors always look at is the Price to Earnings Ratio, or PE for short. This shows us how much investors are willing to pay for each dollar of earnings in a given stock, and is easily one of the most popular financial ratios in the world. The best use of the PE ratio is to compare the stock’s current PE ratio with: a) where this ratio has been in the past; b) how it compares to the average for the industry/sector; and c) how it compares to the market as a whole.

On this front, Prudential Financial has a trailing twelve months PE ratio of 11.1, as you can see in the chart below:

This level actually compares pretty favorably with the market at large, as the PE for the S&P 500 stands at about 21.5. If we focus on the long-term PE trend, Prudential Financial’s current PE level puts it above its midpoint over the past five years.

Further, the stock’s PE also compares favorably with the industry’s trailing twelve months PE ratio, which stands at 14.3. At the very least, this indicates that the stock is relatively undervalued right now, compared to its peers.

We should also point out that Prudential Financial has a forward PE ratio (price relative to this year’s earnings) of 11.1, which is in line with the current level. Hence the forward earnings estimates are already incorporated in the company’s current share price.

P/S Ratio

Another key metric to note is the Price/Sales ratio. This approach compares a given stock’s price to its total sales, where a lower reading is generally considered better. Some people like this metric more than other value-focused ones because it looks at sales, something that is far harder to manipulate with accounting tricks than earnings.

Right now, Prudential Financial has a P/S ratio of about 0.9. This is significantly lower than the S&P 500 average, which comes in at 3.4 right now. As we can see in the chart below, this is slightly below the highs for this stock in particular over the past few years.

PRU is actually in the higher zone of its trading range in the time period per the P/S metric, which suggests that the company’s stock price has already appreciated to some degree, relative to its sales.

Broad Value Outlook

In aggregate, Prudential Financial currently has a Zacks Value Style Score of A, putting it into the top 20% of all stocks we cover from this look. This makes Prudential Financial a solid choice for value investors, and some of its other key metrics make this pretty clear too.

For example, the PEG ratio for Prudential Financial is 1.4, a level that is slightly lower than the industry average of 1.5. The PEG ratio is a modified PE ratio that takes into account the stock’s earnings growth rate. Additionally, its P/CF ratio (another great indicator of value) comes in at 11.2, which is better than the industry average of 11.5. Clearly, PRU is a solid choice on the value front from multiple angles.

What About the Stock Overall?

Though Prudential Financial might be a good choice for value investors, there are plenty of other factors to consider before investing in this name. In particular, it is worth noting that the company has a Growth grade of F and a Momentum score of F. This gives PRU a Zacks VGM score—or its overarching fundamental grade—of C. (You can read more about the Zacks Style Scores here >>)

Meanwhile, the company’s recent earnings estimates have been encouraging. The current quarter as well as the full year has seen four estimates go higher in the past sixty days compared to none lower.

As a result, the current quarter consensus estimate has risen by 1.6% in the past two months, while the full year estimate has increased 3.2%. You can see the consensus estimate trend and recent price action for the stock in the chart below:

Prudential Financial, Inc. Price and Consensus
 

Prudential Financial, Inc. Price and Consensus | Prudential Financial, Inc. Quote

This favorable trend is why the stock has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and why we are looking for better performance from the company in the near term.

Bottom Line

Prudential Financial is an inspired choice for value investors, as it is hard to beat its incredible lineup of statistics on this front. Its strong Zacks Rank also indicates robust growth potential in the near future. However, the company’s prospects might be constrained due to adverse broader factors, as it has a sluggish industry rank (Bottom 38% out of more than 250 industries). In fact, over the past one year, the industry has clearly underperformed the broader market, as you can see below:

So, value investors might want to wait for the broader factors to turn around in this name first, but once that happens, this stock could be a compelling pick.

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