While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.

Looking at the history of these trends, perhaps none is more beloved than value investing. This strategy simply looks to identify companies that are being undervalued by the broader market. Value investors rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits.

Luckily, Zacks has developed its own Style Scores system in an effort to find stocks with specific traits. Value investors will be interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with both "A" grades in the Value category and high Zacks Ranks are among the strongest value stocks on the market right now.

HSBC (HSBC) is a stock many investors are watching right now. HSBC is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 6.98, which compares to its industry's average of 8.84. HSBC's Forward P/E has been as high as 6.98 and as low as 4.69, with a median of 5.68, all within the past year.

Another notable valuation metric for HSBC is its P/B ratio of 0.90. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. HSBC's current P/B looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/B of 1.93. Over the past 12 months, HSBC's P/B has been as high as 0.90 and as low as 0.74, with a median of 0.82.

Value investors also frequently use the P/S ratio. This metric is found by dividing a stock's price with the company's revenue. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. HSBC has a P/S ratio of 1.19. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.21.

Finally, we should also recognize that HSBC has a P/CF ratio of 6.28. This metric takes into account a company's operating cash flow and can be used to find stocks that are undervalued based on their solid cash outlook. This stock's P/CF looks attractive against its industry's average P/CF of 15.07. Over the past 52 weeks, HSBC's P/CF has been as high as 6.43 and as low as 4.37, with a median of 5.78.

Another great Banks - Foreign stock you could consider is Standard Chartered (SCBFF), which is a # 2 (Buy) stock with a Value Score of A.

Additionally, Standard Chartered has a P/B ratio of 0.50 while its industry's price-to-book ratio sits at 1.93. For SCBFF, this valuation metric has been as high as 0.58, as low as 0.37, with a median of 0.46 over the past year.

These are just a handful of the figures considered in HSBC and Standard Chartered's great Value grade. Still, they help show that the stock is likely being undervalued at the moment. Add this to the strength of its earnings outlook, and we can clearly see that HSBC and SCBFF is an impressive value stock right now.

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