Here's Why You Should Add Legg Mason (LM) To Your Portfolio

With solid inorganic growth strategies, Legg Mason (NYSE:LM) appears a solid bet now. Further, the company's focus on expanding product offerings for its customers bodes well for the long term.

Moreover, positive growth prospects and robust fundamentals make this Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock a wise investment option.

Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for fiscal 2020 and fiscal 2021 moved up 5.1% and 3.9%, respectively.

Shares of Legg Mason have gained 24.8% in the past six months, outperforming 5.9% growth recorded by the industry.

There are also a number of other aspects which make the stock an attractive investment option.

3 Reasons Why Legg Mason is a Must Buy

Strategic Acquisitions: Legg Mason has expanded primarily via acquisitions, with majority of its assets under management (AUM) growth being driven by the same. These acquisitions have significantly diversified its product offerings and expanded the company’s market share globally. These investments were in line with the company’s long-term strategy focused on providing investors with choices across investment capability, product and vehicle, and distribution.

Stock is Undervalued: Legg Mason has a P/E and P/B ratios of 10.80 and 0.83 compared with the industry’s average of 12.38 and 1.51, respectively. Also, the stock has a Value Score of A. Based on these ratios, the stock seems undervalued.

Strong Leverage: Legg Mason’s debt/equity ratio is 0.54 compared with the S&P 500 average of 0.67, displaying low debt burden relatively. It highlights the financial stability of the company even in an unstable economic environment.

Other Stocks to Consider

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) has been witnessing upward estimate revisions for the past 30 days, with the company’s shares rising nearly 2.9%, in six months’ time. It sports a Zacks Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Oaktree Capital Group, LLC (NYSE:OAK) has been witnessing upward estimate revisions for the past 30 days. Over the past six months, this Zacks #1 Ranked company’s shares have been up more than 23%.

BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) has been witnessing upward estimate revisions for the past 30 days. In the past six months, this Zacks Rank #1 company’s shares have been up more than 8%.

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