The following are the top rated Financial stocks according to Validea's P/E/Growth Investor model based on the published strategy of Peter Lynch. This strategy looks for stocks trading at a reasonable price relative to earnings growth that also possess strong balance sheets.
SYNCHRONY FINANCIAL (SYF) is a large-cap value stock in the Consumer Financial Services industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Peter Lynch is 96% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.
Company Description: Synchrony Financial is a consumer financial services company focused on delivering digitally enabled product suites. The Company provides a range of credit products through financing programs it has established with a diverse group of national and regional retailers, local merchants, manufacturers, buying groups, industry associations and healthcare service providers. The Company primarily offers private label, dual card, co-brand, and general-purpose credit cards, as well as short- and long-term installment loans, and savings products through Synchrony Bank (the Bank). It primarily manages its credit products through five sales platforms (Home & Auto, Digital, Diversified & Value, Health & Wellness and Lifestyle). The Bank offers directly to retail, affinity relationships and commercial customers, a range of deposit products, including certificates of deposit, individual retirement accounts (IRAs), money market accounts, savings accounts and sweep and affinity deposits.
The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.
| YIELD ADJUSTED P/E TO GROWTH (PEG) RATIO: | PASS |
| EARNINGS PER SHARE: | PASS |
| TOTAL DEBT/EQUITY RATIO: | NEUTRAL |
| EQUITY/ASSETS RATIO: | PASS |
| RETURN ON ASSETS: | PASS |
| FREE CASH FLOW: | BONUS PASS |
| NET CASH POSITION: | NEUTRAL |
Detailed Analysis of SYNCHRONY FINANCIAL
CHUBB LTD (CB) is a large-cap value stock in the Insurance (Prop. & Casualty) industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Peter Lynch is 93% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.
Company Description: Chubb Limited is a Switzerland-based holding company. The Company, through its subsidiaries, provides a range of insurance and reinsurance products and services to clients around the world. Its segments include North America Commercial property and casualty (P&C) Insurance, North America Personal P&C Insurance, North America Agricultural Insurance, Overseas General Insurance, Global Reinsurance and Life Insurance. It offers commercial insurance products and service offerings, such as risk management programs, loss control, and engineering and complex claims management. It provides specialized insurance products to areas, such as aviation and energy. It also offers personal lines insurance coverage, including homeowners, automobile, valuables, umbrella liability and recreational marine products. In addition, it supplies personal accident, supplemental health and life insurance to individuals in select countries.
The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.
| P/E/GROWTH RATIO: | PASS |
| SALES AND P/E RATIO: | PASS |
| EPS GROWTH RATE: | PASS |
| TOTAL DEBT/EQUITY RATIO: | NEUTRAL |
| EQUITY/ASSETS RATIO: | PASS |
| RETURN ON ASSETS: | PASS |
| FREE CASH FLOW: | NEUTRAL |
| NET CASH POSITION: | NEUTRAL |
Detailed Analysis of CHUBB LTD
ASSURANT INC (AIZ) is a mid-cap value stock in the Insurance (Prop. & Casualty) industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Peter Lynch is 93% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.
Company Description: Assurant, Inc. is a global business services company, which supports, protects, and connects consumer purchases. The Company operates in North America, Latin America, Europe, and Asia Pacific through two segments: Global Lifestyle and Global Housing. The Global Lifestyle segment consists of Connected Living, which provides mobile device solutions, extended service contracts and related services for consumer electronics and appliances, and credit and other insurance products, as well as iSmash, a provider of mobile device solutions, and Global Automotive, which offers vehicle protection services, commercial equipment services and other related services. Through its Global Housing segment, it provides lender-placed homeowners, manufactured housing and flood insurance, as well as voluntary manufactured housing, condominium and homeowners insurance (Homeowners), and renters insurance and other products (Renters and Other).
The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.
| P/E/GROWTH RATIO: | PASS |
| SALES AND P/E RATIO: | PASS |
| EPS GROWTH RATE: | PASS |
| TOTAL DEBT/EQUITY RATIO: | NEUTRAL |
| EQUITY/ASSETS RATIO: | PASS |
| RETURN ON ASSETS: | PASS |
| FREE CASH FLOW: | NEUTRAL |
| NET CASH POSITION: | NEUTRAL |
Detailed Analysis of ASSURANT INC
AMERICAN FINANCIAL GROUP INC (AFG) is a large-cap value stock in the Insurance (Prop. & Casualty) industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Peter Lynch is 91% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.
Company Description: American Financial Group, Inc. is an insurance holding company. The Company is engaged in property and casualty insurance, focusing on specialized commercial products for businesses. The Company operates through two segments: Property and casualty insurance and Other. Property and casualty insurance business includes specialty sub-segments: Property and transportation, which includes physical damage and liability coverage for buses and trucks and other specialty transportation niches, inland and ocean marine, agricultural-related products and other commercial property coverages; Specialty casualty, which includes primarily excess and surplus, executive and professional liability, general liability, umbrella and excess liability, and Specialty financial, which includes risk management insurance programs for lending and leasing institutions (including equipment leasing and collateral and lender-placed mortgage property insurance), fidelity and surety products and trade credit insurance.
The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.
| YIELD ADJUSTED P/E TO GROWTH (PEG) RATIO: | PASS |
| EARNINGS PER SHARE: | PASS |
| TOTAL DEBT/EQUITY RATIO: | NEUTRAL |
| EQUITY/ASSETS RATIO: | PASS |
| RETURN ON ASSETS: | PASS |
| FREE CASH FLOW: | NEUTRAL |
| NET CASH POSITION: | NEUTRAL |
Detailed Analysis of AMERICAN FINANCIAL GROUP INC
RAYMOND JAMES FINANCIAL INC (RJF) is a large-cap value stock in the Investment Services industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Peter Lynch is 91% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.
Company Description: Raymond James Financial, Inc. is a diversified financial services company providing private client group (PCG), capital markets, asset management, banking and other services to individuals, corporations and municipalities. The Company's PCG services include financial planning, investment advisory and securities transaction services, which are provided to clients through financial advisors. Its capital markets services include investment banking, institutional sales, securities trading, equity research, and the syndication and management of investments in low-income housing funds and funds of a similar nature. Its asset management services include asset management, portfolio management and related administrative services that are provided to retail and institutional clients. Its banking services provide various types of loans, including securities-based loans, corporate loans (commercial and industrial, and commercial real estate), residential mortgage loans and tax-exempt loans.
The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.
| P/E/GROWTH RATIO: | PASS |
| SALES AND P/E RATIO: | PASS |
| EPS GROWTH RATE: | PASS |
| TOTAL DEBT/EQUITY RATIO: | NEUTRAL |
| EQUITY/ASSETS RATIO: | PASS |
| RETURN ON ASSETS: | PASS |
| FREE CASH FLOW: | NEUTRAL |
| NET CASH POSITION: | NEUTRAL |
Detailed Analysis of RAYMOND JAMES FINANCIAL INC
About Peter Lynch: Perhaps the greatest mutual fund manager of all-time, Lynch guided Fidelity Investment's Magellan Fund to a 29.2 percent average annual return from 1977 until his retirement in 1990, almost doubling the S&P 500's 15.8 percent yearly return over that time. Lynch's common sense approach and quick wit made him one of the most quoted investors on Wall Street. ("Go for a business that any idiot can run -- because sooner or later, any idiot probably is going to run it," is one of his many pearls of wisdom.) Lynch's bestseller One Up on Wall Street is something of a "stocks for the everyman/everywoman", breaking his approach down into easy-to-understand concepts.
About Validea: Validea is aninvestment researchservice that follows the published strategies of investment legends. Validea offers both stock analysis and model portfolios based on gurus who have outperformed the market over the long-term, including Warren Buffett, Benjamin Graham, Peter Lynch and Martin Zweig. For more information about Validea, click here
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
