Is AMN Healthcare Services (AMN) A Suitable Value Stock?

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 AMN Healthcare Services Inc (NYSE:AMN) 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, AMN Healthcare has a trailing twelve months PE ratio of 16.1, 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 compares in at about 20.3. If we focus on the stock’s long-term PE trend, the current level puts AMN Healthcare’s current PE ratio below its midpoint over the past five years. Moreover, the current level is fairly below the highs for this stock, suggesting it might be a good entry point.

Further, the stock’s PE also compares favorably with its sector’s trailing twelve months PE ratio, which stands at 20.4. At the very least, this indicates that the stock is relatively undervalued right now, compared to its peers.

We should also point out that AMN Healthcare has a forward PE ratio (price relative to this year’s earnings) of 15.9, so it is fair to say that a slightly more value-oriented path may be ahead for AMN Healthcare stock in the near term too.

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, AMN Healthcare has a P/S ratio of about 1. This is lower than the S&P 500 average, which comes in at 3.2 right now.

If anything, this suggests some level of undervalued trading—at least compared to historical norms.

Broad Value Outlook

In aggregate, AMN Healthcare 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 AMN Healthcare a solid choice for value investors.

For example, the P/CF ratio (another great indicator of value) comes in at 13.1, which is better than the industry average of 14.6. Clearly, AMN is a good choice on the value front from multiple angles.

What About the Stock Overall?

Though AMN Healthcare 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 B and a Momentum score of F. This gives AMN a Zacks VGM score—or its overarching fundamental grade—of B. (You can read more about the Zacks Style Scores here >>)

Meanwhile, the company’s recent earnings estimates have been mixed at best. The current quarter has seen no estimate go higher in the past sixty days compared to three lower, while the full year estimate has seen three up and no down in the same time period.

This has had a significant impact on the consensus estimate though as the current quarter consensus estimate has dipped by 6.3% in the past two months and the full year estimate has inched up by 1.2%. You can see the consensus estimate trend and recent price action for the stock in the chart below:

AMN Healthcare Services Inc Price and Consensus

This somewhat mixed trend is why the stock has just a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) and why we are looking for in-line performance from the company in the near term.

Bottom Line

AMN Healthcare is an inspired choice for value investors, as it is hard to beat its incredible lineup of statistics on this front. Furthermore, a robust industry rank (among the Top 29%) instills investor confidence. However, with a Zacks Rank #3, it is hard to get too excited about this company overall. 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 wait for estimates and analyst sentiment to turn around in this name first, but once that happens, this stock could be a compelling pick.

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