The Meaning Behind Value Stocks

A value stock is traditionally defined in terms of how investors in the marketplace are valuing that company's future growth prospects. Low P/E multiples are good base indicators that the company is undervalued and can most likely be labelled as a value stock.

The following stocks are considered to be notable value stocks in the consumer cyclical sector:

This quarter, Medifast experienced a decrease in earnings per share, which was $2.77 in Q2 and is now $2.12. Most recently, the company reported a dividend yield of 8.2%, which has decreased by 0.01% from last quarter's yield of 8.21%.

Most recently, PulteGroup reported earnings per share at $3.28, whereas in Q3 earnings per share sat at $2.9. The company's most recent dividend yield sits at 0.77%, which has decreased by 0.15% from 0.92% last quarter.

Under Armour saw a decrease in earnings per share from 0.24 in Q2 to $0.19 now. Honda Motor Co's earnings per share for Q3 sits at $1.06, whereas in Q2, they were at 1.07. The company's most recent dividend yield sits at 6.65%, which has increased by 1.63% from 5.02% last quarter.

Most recently, Express reported earnings per share at $-9.83, whereas in Q2 earnings per share sat at $-9.05.

The Significance: A value stock may need some time to rebound from its undervalued position. The risk of investing in a value stock is that this emergence may never materialize.