Based on key financial metrics such as the price-to-sales ratio, shareholder yield and the price-earnings ratio, the following 4 stocks made the list for top value stocks in the Investment Management & Fund Operators industry. Those looking for value stocks to add to their portfolio may want to use this list as a starting point for further investment research.

Why Focus on Undervalued Investment Management & Fund Operators Stocks?

Value investors seek to buy stocks at a discount to their intrinsic value. Long-term returns show that such strategies are advantageous. Value stocks, as a group, tend to outperform growth stocks over extended periods of time. Typically, value investors perform financial analysis of numerous metrics, don’t follow the herd and are long-term investors.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade is derived from a stock’s Value Score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

What Goes Into AAII’s Value Grade?

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data as well as the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movement. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors with that task.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A–F grades for more than just value. It is possible for a stock to appear cheap based on one valuation metric but appear expensive on another. It is also possible for one valuation ratio to be associated with outperforming stocks during certain periods of time but not others. Some stocks may even have null values for certain metrics like the price-earnings ratio or the price-to-book ratio but not others. An example of this would be a company with losses instead of profits or a negative book value because of heavy borrowing. Negative earnings or book value result in non-meaningful ratios that are left blank or null.

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4 Undervalued Investment Management & Fund Operators Stocks

Of course, there are countless value stocks that are worth mentioning, but this is a concise list of the top 4 undervalued stocks in the Investment Management & Fund Operators industry for Tuesday, February 20, 2024. Let’s take a closer look at their individual scores to see how they measure up against each other and the Investment Management & Fund Operators industry median.

The Value Grade is assigned based on how each stock’s composite valuation compares to all other stocks.

The process for assigning grades starts with each variable for a given stock. The percentile rankings for all valid ratios that a stock has are calculated. So, for instance, a stock could have a price-to-book ranking in the 43rd percentile, a price-earnings ranking in the 67th percentile, a price-to-sales ranking in the 23rd percentile, etc. Then, those rankings are averaged for each stock. (A minimum of two valid variables are required, though all six will be used if available.)

Once the average of the individual variables is calculated, that average is ranked against all stocks. Put another way, each stock’s composite valuation is compared to all other stocks. These ranks are then sorted into quintiles from the cheapest 20% (a grade of A) to the most expensive 20% (a grade of F).

As always, we recommend that you conduct proper due diligence and research before investing in any security. We also suggest that investors utilize numerous grades, not just value, when it comes to deciding whether a company is a good fit for their allocation needs.

Principal Financial Group Inc’s Value Grade

Value Grade:

Principal Financial Group, Inc. is a global financial company. The Company offers businesses, individuals and institutional clients a range of financial products and services, including retirement, asset management and insurance through its diverse family of financial services companies. The Company's segments include retirement and income solutions, principal asset management and benefits and protection. The Retirement and Income Solutions segment offers workplace savings and retirement solutions, banking, trust and custodial services, individual variable annuities, and pension risk transfer, among others. The Principal Asset Management segment provides global investment solutions to institutional, retirement, retail and high net worth investors. The Benefits and Protection segment is organized into Specialty Benefits, which provides group dental, group life insurance, group disability insurance, supplemental health products, and individual disability insurance, and life insurance.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are value and so on.

Principal Financial Group Inc has a Value Score of 77, which is considered to be undervalued.

When you look at Principal Financial Group Inc’s price-to-sales ratio at 1.38 compared to the industry median at 3.81, this company has a lower price relative to revenue compared to its peers. This could make Principal Financial Group Inc’s stock more attractive for value investors.

Principal Financial Group Inc’s price-earnings ratio is 13.19 compared to the industry median at 13.81. This means it has a lower share price relative to earnings compared to its peers. This could make Principal Financial Group Inc more attractive for value investors.

Now, let’s assess Principal Financial Group Inc’s EV/EBITDA ratio, also known as enterprise multiple. At 8.1, when compared to the industry median of 15.1, the company may be considered undervalued in relation to its peers. Value investors could use the enterprise multiple to identify stocks that are considered overvalued or undervalued relative to their industry.

Shareholder yield is the sum of a stock’s dividend yield (paid over previous 12 months minus special dividends) and the percentage of net share buybacks over the previous 12 months. Principal Financial Group Inc’s shareholder yield is higher than its industry median ratio of 3.50%. Value investors may look for an attractive shareholder yield because it can be a powerful tool for identifying if the company has a good management team.

As one of the most common value metrics, the price-to-book ratio evaluates a company’s current market price relative to its book value. Principal Financial Group Inc’s price-to-book ratio is higher than its industry median ratio of 1.06. This could make Principal Financial Group Inc less attractive to investors looking for a new addition to their portfolio.

Lastly, let’s take a look at Principal Financial Group Inc’s price-to-free-cash-flow ratio (P/FCF), which can indicate a company’s market value relative to its operating cash flow. Principal Financial Group Inc’s price-to-free-cash-flow ratio is lower than its industry median ratio of 15.04. This could make Principal Financial Group Inc more attractive because the lower P/FCF ratio indicates that Principal Financial Group Inc is undervalued. The P/FCF ratio metric can also be viewed over a long-term time frame to see if the company's cash flow to share price value is generally improving or worsening.

Rand Capital Corp’s Value Grade

Value Grade:

Rand Capital Corporation is an internally managed, closed-end, diversified, management investment company. The Company?s investment objective is to maximize total return to its shareholders with current income and capital appreciation by focusing its debt and related equity investments in privately held, lower middle market companies with committed and experienced managements in a variety of industries. At times when excess cash is available, the Company may also invest in high yielding publicly traded equity instruments. It generally has to invest at least 70% of total assets in qualifying assets and provide managerial assistance to the portfolio companies in which they invest. The Company's portfolio includes software, manufacturing, professional services, consumer product, automotive, BDC investment fund, and oil and gas. The Company?s investment activities are managed by its external investment adviser, Rand Capital Management, LLC.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are value and so on.

Rand Capital Corp has a Value Score of 75, which is considered to be undervalued.

Rand Capital Corp’s price-earnings ratio is 6.0 compared to the industry median at 13.8. This means that it has a lower price relative to its earnings compared to its peers. This makes Rand Capital Corp more attractive for value investors.

Rand Capital Corp’s price-to-book ratio is higher than its peers. This could make Rand Capital Corp less attractive for value investors when compared to the industry median at 1.06.

You can read more about Rand Capital Corp’s key financial metrics like shareholder yield, price-to-free-cash-flow and EV/EBITDA ratio, or learn more about its Momentum and Growth Grades, by subscribing to A+ Investor.

Silvercrest Asset Management Group Inc’s Value Grade

Value Grade:

Silvercrest Asset Management Group Inc. is a full-service wealth management company. The Company operates through the investment management industry segment. The Company is focused on providing financial advisory and related family office services to high-net-worth individuals and institutional investors. The Company offers a suite of complementary and customized family office services for families seeking oversight of their financial affairs. The Company provides a range of administrative services to the management of certain of its Company?s funds of funds and other investment funds collectively, the Silvercrest Funds. It also provides a range of family office services to some of its clients, including philanthropic, estate and wealth planning services, tax planning and preparation, financial statement, bill paying and record keeping services, bank loan arrangement and payment services, and property and casualty insurance review.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are value and so on.

Silvercrest Asset Management Group Inc has a Value Score of 78, which is considered to be undervalued.

Silvercrest Asset Management Group Inc’s price-earnings ratio is 13.4 compared to the industry median at 13.8. This means that it has a lower price relative to its earnings compared to its peers. This makes Silvercrest Asset Management Group Inc more attractive for value investors.

Silvercrest Asset Management Group Inc’s price-to-book ratio is lower than its peers. This could make Silvercrest Asset Management Group Inc more attractive for value investors when compared to the industry median at 1.06.

You can read more about Silvercrest Asset Management Group Inc’s key financial metrics like shareholder yield, price-to-free-cash-flow and EV/EBITDA ratio, or learn more about its Momentum and Growth Grades, by subscribing to A+ Investor.

Safeguard Scientifics Inc’s Value Grade

Value Grade:

Safeguard Scientifics, Inc. is a provider of capital and relevant expertise to technology-driven businesses. The Company holds interests in 8 non-consolidated companies. The Company offers strategic, operational, and management support to certain of its ownership interests. Through its strategic support, the Company offers strategic direction to certain of its ownership interests, which include defining short and long-term strategic goals; identifying and planning for the critical success factors to reach these goals; identifying and addressing the challenges and operational improvements; and identifying sources of and providing capital to drive growth. Through its management and operational support, the Company serves on the boards of directors of its partner companies, working with them to develop and implement strategic and operating plans. It measures and monitors the achievement of these plans through regular review of operational and financial performance measurements.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are value and so on.

Safeguard Scientifics Inc has a Value Score of 96, which is considered to be undervalued.

Safeguard Scientifics Inc’s price-to-book ratio is higher than its peers. This could make Safeguard Scientifics Inc less attractive for value investors when compared to the industry median at 1.06.

You can read more about Safeguard Scientifics Inc’s key financial metrics like shareholder yield, price-to-free-cash-flow and EV/EBITDA ratio, or learn more about its Momentum and Growth Grades, by subscribing to A+ Investor.

Other Investment Management & Fund Operators Stock Grades

Value is just one of the five Stock Grades included in our A+ Investor service. AAII members can see the top-graded stocks—those with grades of A or B for value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality—on the A+ Stock Grades Screener.

Also, if you want full access to all of AAII’s premium services, you can subscribe to one convenient bundled plan called AAII Platinum where you can try out A+ Investor, AAII Dividend Investing, the Stock Superstars Report, Growth Investing and VMQ Stocks. With the other premium services, you can dive deep into additional metrics, portfolios, commentary and information about Investment Management & Fund Operators stocks as well as other industrys.

Choosing Which of the 4 Best Investment Management & Fund Operators Stocks Is Right for You

Choosing which value stocks to invest in will ultimately depend on your individual goals and allocation; however, comparing similar value stocks in the same industry can help you analyze which might be better investments for you in the long run. So, let’s take a look at the Value Grade for all of our stocks.

• Principal Financial Group Inc stock has a Value Grade of B.
• Rand Capital Corp stock has a Value Grade of B.
• Silvercrest Asset Management Group Inc stock has a Value Grade of B.
• Safeguard Scientifics Inc stock has a Value Grade of A.

Now that you have a bit more background about each of the 4 undervalued stocks in the Investment Management & Fund Operators industry as well as their overall grades, it’s time for you to conduct additional research to see if these could fit your portfolio needs based on your goals and risk tolerance. AAII can help you figure out both and identify which investments align with what works best for you.

We do so through a program of education that teaches you to invest for yourself and become an effective manager of your own wealth—no more relying on others for your financial independence. You can rely on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis that makes you a better investor.

A+ Investor adds to that qualitative teaching by giving you a powerful data suite that helps you whittle down investment decisions to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

Additional Resources About Investment Management & Fund Operators Stocks

Want to learn more about Investment Management & Fund Operators stocks to see if they could be the right investment for you? Check out some additional resources and articles to help you on your financial journey.

• 5 Undervalued Investment Management & Fund Operators Stocks for Tuesday, February 20
• 4 Undervalued Investment Management & Fund Operators Stocks for Monday, February 19
• 7 Undervalued Investment Management & Fund Operators Stocks for Friday, February 16
• Why Hercules Capital Inc’s (HTGC) Stock Is Up 4.85%

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.