Is AES (AES) Stock Undervalued Right Now?

While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.

Looking at the history of these trends, perhaps none is more beloved than value investing. This strategy simply looks to identify companies that are being undervalued by the broader market. Value investors use fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large.

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 value investors might notice is AES (AES). AES is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 10.58, which compares to its industry's average of 13.77. Over the past year, AES's Forward P/E has been as high as 13.65 and as low as 10.19, with a median of 11.92.

AES is also sporting a PEG ratio of 1.24. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. AES's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 2.31. Over the past 52 weeks, AES's PEG has been as high as 1.75 and as low as 1.18, with a median of 1.42.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is AES's P/B ratio of 1.79. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus 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 1.89. AES's P/B has been as high as 2.18 and as low as 1.53, with a median of 1.89, over 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. This is a popular metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement, so they are often considered a better performance indicator. AES has a P/S ratio of 0.96. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 2.13.

These are only a few of the key metrics included in AES's strong Value grade, but they help show that the stock is likely undervalued right now. When factoring in the strength of its earnings outlook, AES looks like an impressive value stock at the moment.