Should Value Investors Buy Synchrony Financial (SYF) Stock?

Here at Zacks, our focus is on the proven Zacks Rank system, which emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find great stocks. Nevertheless, we are always paying attention to the latest value, growth, and momentum trends to underscore strong picks.Of these, perhaps no stock market trend is more popular than value investing, which is a strategy that has proven to be successful in all sorts of market environments. Value investors rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.Luckily, Zacks has developed its own Style Scores system in an effort to find stocks with specific traits. Value investors will be interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with both "A" grades in the Value category and high Zacks Ranks are among the strongest value stocks on the market right now.One stock to keep an eye on is Synchrony Financial (SYF). SYF is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 8.45 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 16.66. Over the past 52 weeks, SYF's Forward P/E has been as high as 10.68 and as low as 6.56, with a median of 8.16.Investors should also note that SYF holds a PEG ratio of 0.72. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. SYF's industry has an average PEG of 1 right now. Within the past year, SYF's PEG has been as high as 1.31 and as low as 0.72, with a median of 1.Another notable valuation metric for SYF is its P/B ratio of 1.62. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against 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 3.28. Over the past 12 months, SYF's P/B has been as high as 1.81 and as low as 1.13, with a median of 1.35.Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is is calculated as price divided by sales. This is a prefered metric because revenue can't really be manipulated, so sales are often a truer performance indicator. SYF has a P/S ratio of 1.12. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.94.Finally, we should also recognize that SYF has a P/CF ratio of 6.36. This figure highlights a company's operating cash flow and can be used to find firms that are undervalued when considering their impressive cash outlook. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 19.04. Over the past year, SYF's P/CF has been as high as 7.46 and as low as 4.77, with a median of 5.85.These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Synchrony Financial is likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, SYF feels like a great value stock at the moment.Just Released: Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2025Hurry – you can still get in early on our 10 top tickers for 2025. Handpicked by Zacks Director of Research Sheraz Mian, this portfolio has been stunningly and consistently successful. From inception in 2012 through November, 2024, the Zacks Top 10 Stocks gained +2,112.6%, more than QUADRUPLING the S&P 500’s +475.6%. Sheraz has combed through 4,400 companies covered by the Zacks Rank and handpicked the best 10 to buy and hold in 2025. You can still be among the first to see these just-released stocks with enormous potential. See New Top 10 Stocks >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Synchrony Financial (SYF): Free Stock Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks