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The S & P 500 has been notching fresh highs as of late, but investors with a keen eye may find reasonably priced stocks that are beating the market. The broad market index reached an intraday all-time high last week and closed at a fresh record Monday. The benchmark is currently flexing a last 12-month price-earnings ratio of roughly 25 times, according to FactSet data. But some stocks are offering solid performance at a lower valuation when compared with the S & P 500. CNBC Pro screened for names that are half as cheap compared with the index and that are meeting the following criteria: Their last 12 months price-earnings ratio is less than half of the S & P 500’s price-earnings ratio They have outperformed the S & P 500 in 2024 They are also less volatile than the broader market with a beta below 1 Readers can add and customize this screen using the CNBC Pro Stock Screener Tool here . Insurance firm Chubb made the list. Shares climbed more than 18% in 2024 through Monday’s close, compared with the S & P 500’s 13% gain. The stock currently maintains a TTM price-earnings ratio of 11.8. The company grabbed headlines last month after it was revealed as the “secret stock” that Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway had been quietly accumulating. Regulatory filings show Berkshire purchased nearly 26 million shares of Chubb for a stake valued at $6.7 billion. CB YTD mountain Chubb stock has gained more than 18% in 2024. Bank of America upgraded Chubb to neutral following the disclosure of Berkshire’s stake, with analyst Joshua Shanker asserting that the firm “would expect there is price support for the stock among value investors who might perceive $260/[share] as a new floor as $149/[share] in book value per share should only be expected to grow over time.” Insurance company Arch Capital Group also made the list. Shares have climbed more than 35% in 2024, while Arch’s TTM price-earnings ratio sits at 7.95, the lowest on the list. ACGL YTD mountain Arch Capital stock has added more than 35% in 2024. Earlier this month, Bank of America’s Shanker reiterated a buy rating on the stock, hiking his price target by $10 to $119. That suggests roughly 18% upside from Monday’s close. The analyst said the company has an “excellent track record in industry defying performance.” “Commercial insurance underwriting tends to have a transparent market pricing system disintermediated by brokers who stand closer to the customer than the carrier, making it difficult for carrier to outperform, yet Arch has consistently delivered that outperformance,” he said. Other favorably priced names on the list include Fox Corp , Hartford Financial and Altria Group .
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