5 Bargain Stocks To Grab For Black Friday

The biggest bargain hunt of the year is about to commence. As Friday approaches, shoppers are preparing to pick up the best shopping deals of the year. Known as Black Friday since the early 1930s, this is the day which accounts for nearly 30% of retailers’ annual revenues. Encouraging initial estimates of retailers’ sales during this period typically help markets close higher.

During this time, the focus remains squarely on retailers' stocks. Most investors look to select those that have also gained from recently released quarterly results. But why neglect other great stocks with strong fundamentals available at great bargains? When the focus is on growth stocks, it may a good time to pick up strong value choices available at affordable prices.

Cheap Stocks Back in Favor

It couldn’t be a better time to focus on value stocks. Neglected since the 2008 financial crisis, they have returned to popularity this year. Over the year, U.S. value stocks have gained three times more than growth stocks and are close to their best performance in 10 years. According to data from Bloomberg, the valuation of this group is the highest in seven years compared to growth stocks.

This reversal of fortunes is largely attributable to a more favorable investment climate. Following an extended period of steady job gains, the Federal Reserve is on the verge of raising rates. Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s surprise presidential victory has led to expectations of higher growth and inflation. Trump’s policy proposals have sparked off speculation that several industry friendly measures will be implemented soon.

Profiting from the Black Friday Boost

As Black Friday approaches, investors will also be looking to profit from the impetus markets receive from retailers’ initial estimates. Traditionally, markets finish higher on Monday compared to their closing level before Thanksgiving if such numbers are favorable in nature.

According to the National Retail Federation, retail sales are expected to rise 3.6% during this year’s holiday season. Further, around 74% of shoppers will choose Black Friday compared with a 21%, 47% and 24% respectively on Thanksgiving Day, Small Business Saturday and Sunday. (Read: 5 Retail Picks Ahead of Black Friday)

Such projections imply that Black Friday sales will mostly likely come in higher this year. According to another long standing statistical observation, markets are expected to gain over the period between Cyber Monday and the end of the first week of December. This period draws its strength from two factors, gains made over the last two sessions before an exchange holiday and those accrued at the end of a month.

Our Choices

Value stocks have found favor with investors once again this year. Meanwhile, markets are poised to rack up gains over the weekend which follows Black Friday as well as afterward. This makes it a good time to pick up stocks on the cheap in order to make the most of gains available at the start of the holiday shopping season.

In order to pick value stocks, we have selected those whose Value score is A or B and whose price-to-earnings ratio is below their industry average. Additionally, stocks available below $15 have been selected in order to give you bargain picks. However, picking winning stocks is a difficult task.

This is where our VGM score comes in. Here V stands for Value, G for Growth and M for Momentum and the score is a weighted combination of these three scores. Such a score allows you to eliminate the negative aspects of stocks and select winners. However, it is important to keep in mind that each Style Score will carry a different weight while arriving at a VGM score.

We have narrowed down our search to the following stocks based on a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and a solid VGM score. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

TTM Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:TTMI) provides time-critical, one-stop manufacturing services for highly complex printed circuit boards.

TTM Technologies has a VGM Score of A. The stock has a Value score of A and its forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio for the current financial year (F1) is 10.96, lower than the industry average of 19.54. The company has expected earnings growth of more than 100% for the current year. Its earnings estimate for the current year has improved by 15.4% over the last 30 days. The stock’s last closing price is $13.59.

USD Partners LP (NYSE:USDP) acquires, develops and operates energy-related rail terminals and other midstream infrastructure assets and businesses in the U.S. and Canada.

USD Partners has a VGM Score of A. The stock has a Value score of B and it has a P/E (F1) of 11.03, which is lower than the industry average of 19.31. The company has expected earnings growth of 53.7% for the current year. Its earnings estimate for the current year has improved by 46.5% over the last 30 days. The stock’s last closing price is $14.10.

Kemet Corp. (NYSE:KEM) is the world's largest manufacturer of solid tantalum capacitors and one of the most prominent manufacturers of multilayer ceramic capacitors.

Kemet has a VGM Score of A. The stock has a Value score of A and it has a P/E (F1) of 15.28, which is lower than the industry average of 19.54. The company has expected earnings growth of 79.2% for the current year. Its earnings estimate for the current year has improved by 43.3% over the last 30 days. The stock’s last closing price is $4.65.

Fibria Celulose SA (NYSE:FBR) is a Brazilian company involved in the production, sale, and export of short fiber pulp.

Fibria Celulose has a VGM Score of B. The stock has a Value score of A and it has a P/E (F1) of 5.53, which is lower than the industry average of 17.37. The company has expected earnings growth of more than 100% for the current year. Its earnings estimate for the current year has improved by 13% over the last 30 days. The stock’s last closing price is $8.76.

ACCO Brands Corporation (NYSE:ACCO) is a world leader in branded office products. Under the GBC brand, the Company is also a leader in the professional printing market.

ACCO Brands has a VGM Score of B. The stock has a Value score of A and it has a P/E (F1) of 14.59, which is lower than the industry average of 16.16. The company has expected earnings growth of 9% for the current year. Its earnings estimate for the current year has improved by 3.2% over the last 30 days. The stock’s last closing price is $12.75.

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