Focus On These 4 Low P/cf Stocks To Maximize Returns In 2025

The S&P 500 set another record high on Wednesday, climbing 0.24% to close at 6,144.15, marking its second consecutive all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.16% to settle at 44,627.59, while the Nasdaq Composite inched up 0.07% to 20,056.25, extending its winning streak to five sessions.

Investor optimism persisted despite the ongoing trade uncertainties and the Federal Reserve’s cautious stance on interest rate cuts. Economic data and earnings reports in the coming weeks will play key roles in determining whether this market has further room to run or if volatility will return. But at this juncture, investors might consider balancing their portfolios with value stocks. Typically trading below their intrinsic value, these stocks offer a margin of safety during market fluctuations.

When evaluating value stocks, one of the most effective valuation metrics is the Price to Cash Flow (P/CF) ratio. This metric measures the market price of a stock relative to the cash flow the company generates on a per-share basis. A lower P/CF ratio indicates that the stock is trading at a better value, offering strong cash generation potential relative to its price. Here are four companies — EnerSys ENS, Sonoco Products Company SON, World Kinect Corporation WKC and General Motors Company GM.

Price to Cash Flow Reveals Financial Health

Questions may arise as to why we are considering the P/CF valuation metric when the most widely used metric is Price/Earnings (or P/E). Well, what makes P/CF stand out is that operating cash flow adds back non-cash charges such as depreciation and amortization to net income, reflecting a company's financial health.

Analysts caution that a company’s earnings are subject to accounting estimates and management manipulation. However, cash flow is reliable. It is net cash flow that reveals how much money a company is actually generating and how effectively management is putting the same to use.

A positive cash flow indicates an increase in the company’s liquid assets. This gives the company the means to settle debt, shell out for its expenses, reinvest in its business, endure downturns and finally pay back its shareholders. Then again, a negative cash flow implies a decline in the company’s liquidity, which lowers its flexibility to support these moves.

What’s the Best Value Investing Strategy?

An investment decision solely based on the P/CF metric may not fetch the desired results. To identify stocks that are trading at a discount, you should expand your search criteria and also consider the price-to-book ratio, price-to-earnings ratio and price-to-sales ratio. Adding a favorable Zacks Rank and a Value Score of A or B to your search criteria should lead to even better results as these eliminate the chance of falling into a value trap.

Here are the parameters for selecting true-value stocks: 

P/CF less than or equal to X-Industry Median.

Price greater than or equal to 5: The stocks must all be trading at a minimum of $5 or higher.

Average 20-Day Volume greater than 100,000: A substantial trading volume ensures that the stock is easily tradable.

P/E using (F1) less than or equal to X-Industry Median: This parameter shortlists stocks that are trading at a discount or are equal to their peers.

P/B less than or equal to X-Industry Median: A lower P/B compared with the industry average implies that there is enough room for the stock to gain.

P/S less than or equal to X-Industry Median: The P/S ratio determines how a stock price compares to the company’s sales — the lower the ratio, the more attractive the stock is.

PEG less than 1: The ratio is used to determine a stock's value by taking the company's earnings growth into account. The PEG ratio portrays a more complete picture than the P/E ratio. A value of less than 1 indicates that the stock is undervalued and that investors need to pay less for a stock that has robust earnings growth prospects.

Zacks Rank less than or equal to 2: Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy) stocks are known to outperform irrespective of the market environment.

Value Score of less than or equal to B: Our research shows that stocks with a Style Score of A or B, when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 or 2, offer the best upside potential.

Here are four of the 12 value stocks that qualified the screening:

EnerSys, the global leader in stored energy solutions for industrial applications, sports a Zacks Rank #1. The company has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 2.2%, on average. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EnerSys’ current financial year sales and earnings per share (EPS) suggests growth of 1% and 19.8%, respectively, from the year-ago period. ENS has a Value Score of A. Shares of ENS were up 12.4% in the past year.

Sonoco Products, a global leader in high-value sustainable packaging, sports a Zacks Rank #1. The company has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 2%, on average. 
 
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Sonoco Products’ current financial year sales and EPS calls for growth of 35.1% and 48.1%, respectively, from the year-ago period. SON has a Value Score of A. Shares of SON have declined 18% in the past year.

See the Zacks Earnings Calendar to stay ahead of market-making news.

World Kinect, a global energy management company offering fulfillment and related services, sports a Zacks Rank #1. The company has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 1.1%, on average.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for World Kinect’s current financial year EPS implies growth of 6.7%, respectively, from the year-ago period. WKC has a Value Score of A. Shares of WKC have rallied 14.7% in the past year.

General Motors, which designs, builds and sells cars, trucks, crossovers and automobile parts globally, carries a Zacks Rank #2. The company has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 15.8%, on average.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for General Motors’ current financial year EPS suggests growth of 8% from the year-ago period. General Motors has a Value Score of A. Shares of GM have rallied 21.1% in the past year.

You can get the rest of the stocks on this list by signing up now for your 2-week free trial to the Research Wizard and start using this screen in your own trading. Further, you can also create your own strategies and backtest them first before taking the investment plunge.

The Research Wizard is a great place to begin. It's easy to use. Everything is in plain language. And it's very intuitive. Start your Research Wizard trial today. And the next time you read an economic report, open up the Research Wizard, plug your finds in, and see what gems come out.

Click here to sign up for a free trial to the Research Wizard today.

Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. 

Disclosure: Performance information for Zacks’ portfolios and strategies is available at: https://www.zacks.com/performance.

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