The Golden Era of Value Investing Is Back

[Zacks | Our Research. Your Success.] Weekday Wisdom [Tracey Ryniec - Editor] The Golden Era of Value Investing Is Back By: Tracey Ryniec December 6, 2022 --------------------------------------------------------------- Is Warren Buffett feeling deja vu in 2022? In the 1960s, growth stocks staged a big rally with 50 of the top growth companies in cutting edge industries like technology and pharmaceuticals, becoming so popular they were called the "Nifty 50." The Nifty 50 were considered "sure things," as investors were willing to pay as high as 50x earnings to own the stocks with the belief that those innovative companies would keep growing at a fast pace forever. By 1969, Buffett found nothing of value to buy, so he dissolved his investing fund and moved to the sidelines. The party finally ended in 1973, as the Arab Oil Embargo, a recession and the inflation that followed, rippled through the world's global stock markets. When the sell-off was over, the Dow had fallen 45% in 2 years. Suddenly, there were many value stocks and Warren Buffett came back into the game, this time, as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. In a now infamous 1974 interview with Forbes Magazine, Buffett could barely contain his giddiness. Forbes asked how he felt about the market opportunities after the big sell-off and he replied "Like an oversexed guy in a harem. This is the time to start investing." Buffett Spends $51 Billion Diving Back In In the Forbes interview, Buffett talked about how 1974 reminded him of the early 1950s, when the Great Depression bear market finally ended and stocks were cheap. "Look, I can't construct a disaster-proof portfolio. But if you're only worried about corporate profits, panic or depression, these things don't bother me at these prices," he said in 1974. Sound familiar? Buffett has been mostly on the sidelines for most of the prior decade, building a massive $144 billion cash position in Berkshire Hathaway. His last mega-deal was when he spent $26 billion to buy Burlington Northern railroad in 2009. He famously didn't even buy any new stocks in the March 2020 coronavirus crash. But suddenly, in 2022, with stocks off their highs by double digits, Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway deployed over $51 billion of the cash hoard into energy stocks. Energy was the best performing sector in 2021, and remains at the top again in 2022, but, in another tie in to the 1970s, it was also one of the top performers of the 1970s. Continued . . . [Zacks Reveals Top "Buffett Stocks" for Today's Market]( We have uncovered some rare companies with spectacular value metrics, rising earnings and irresistible entry points. Zacks Rank timing enables us to catch them just as their true worth is starting to get recognized. Warren Buffett would love them. Now you can ride them to their full potential. Recent recommendations have climbed as much as +183.8%... +186.9%... +312.7%... even +348.7%. [See our latest value recommendations »]( 3 Signs the Golden Era is Returning Buffett may have been giddy over the buying opportunities in stocks in 1974, but it turned out that the rest of the decade was a golden era for value investors too. There are 3 signs that US stocks could be returning to another golden era for value investors in this decade. 1. P/E Ratios are Dropping After topping out above 21 in 2021, the S&P 500 is now trading at 18.3x. That's still well above the single digit P/Es of the late 1970s which is why so many strategists think that stocks may have further to fall. But forward earnings for individual industries have plunged into the single digits. For example, the companies that are drilling and producing oil and natural gas are trading at just 5.4x forward earnings as an industry. That's dirt cheap. 2. Dividend Yields are Rising Along with cheap valuations usually comes rising dividend yields. Not just 2% or 3%, but yields over 8%. The dividend aristocrats, those companies that have raised their dividend payouts for over 20 years, get cheaper than ever in a stock market sell-off so not only are they raising their dividend but the yield rises as the stock gets cheaper. It was easy to get juicy dividends in the 1970s as those valuations dropped. 3. Dollar Cost Averaging Works In Berkshire Hathaway's 1978 letter to shareholders, Warren Buffett discussed their strategy of adding to their stock positions in their insurance portfolio as the bear market continued to rage on. "We are not concerned with whether the market quickly revalues upward securities that we believe are selling at bargain prices. In fact, we prefer just the opposite since, in most years, we expect to have funds available to be net buyers of securities," Buffett wrote. Dollar cost averaging works in value stock bulls because the Street is always late to the party in value stocks, so valuations remain depressed for some time. It's easy to add to your position and still get in at an attractive price. Buffett Gets Out the 1970s Playbook We're already seeing Buffett, and Berkshire Hathaway, mimicking the strategy of the 1970s. Berkshire has started deploying its cash hoard into cheap companies that have record free cash flows, such as Chevron and Occidental Petroleum. If stocks continue to get cheaper this winter, we'll likely see Berkshire dollar cost average into what it considers to be the most attractive companies. It has already upped its stake in Occidental to 20% of the company this year. In the third quarter 2022, Berkshire also jumped into the beaten down semiconductor industry with a $4.1 billion buy of Taiwan Semiconductor shares. What else will it buy? While the overall stock market lagged until 1981, the top value managers like Buffett and Fidelity's Peter Lynch, became investing legends as value investing saw great success. There will be new investing legends created in this decade's value stock rally as well. Are you ready to take advantage of the value stock opportunities? How to Profit From the Return of Value Investing The 2022 pullbacks have given investors a chance to scoop up strong stocks with irresistible entry points. But which companies are most likely to produce big profits over the coming months and years? The easiest way to find top value buys in this market is to see the recommendations in our portfolio, [Zacks Value Investor](. We use the same investing criteria Buffett relied on to build his fortune — with one significant advantage. With Zacks Rank to help us time our entries, we're targeting true value stocks positioned to begin soaring sooner than other stocks. Then we ride them to their full gain potential. Recent closed positions in the portfolio have surged as much as +183.8%... +186.9%... +312.7%... even +348.7%.¹ Now is a great time to look into Value Investor. On Monday morning I'm adding a brand-new pick to the portfolio and you can be among the select few to see it first. Get started today and you are also invited to download our just-released Special Report, Invest Like Warren Buffett. It spotlights 3 key Buffett value investing principles and reveals 5 stocks to consider buying now. I encourage you to look into this unique opportunity right away. Your chance to take advantage ends Sunday, December 11. [Today - Check out Value Investor and Download Invest Like Warren Buffett »]( All the Best, [Tracey Ryniec - signature] Tracey Tracey Ryniec, as Zacks Value Stock Strategist, directs our [Value Investor]( portfolio. ¹ The results listed above are not (or may not be) representative of the performance of all selections made by Zacks Investment Research's newsletter editors and may represent the partial close of a position. This free resource is being sent by [Zacks.com](). We look for investment resources and inform you of these resources, which you may choose to use in making your own investment decisions. Zacks is providing information on this resource to you subject to the Zacks "Terms of Service". Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. The Zacks #1 Rank Performance covers the period beginning on January 1, 1988 through September 12, 2022. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank #1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed above. Zacks Emails If you would prefer to not receive future profit-producing emails from [Zacks.com]() the primary purpose of which is the commercial advertisement or promotion of a commercial product or service, then please [click here]( and confirm your request. If you have trouble with the unsubscribe link, please email support@zacks.com. Zacks Investment Research 10 S. Riverside Plaza, Suite 1600 Chicago, IL 60606