Hi Stephen,
Empire is one of the 'Big Three' publicly traded grocery chains along with Loblaw and Metro. While it has trailed Loblaw this year, it has traded in lockstep with Metro and is up 15.65% this year. Now, is it undervalued? At this point, I'd say it is slightly-to-fairly valued.
On a P/E basis, the company's P/E ratio of 15.41 is well below the industry average (18.79) and slightly below its own average (16.79). On other metrics such as P/S, P/B, P/FCF and EV/EBITDA - valuations are mixed. In some cases it is trading above industry and historical averages, whereas in others it is below. This is why it is difficult to get a complete read on company valuation. Of note, Ycharts proprietary Valuation rating has Empire trading at a 14% premium.
Circling back to the P/E though, it does look good here. Furthermore, it has a forward P/E of only 13.79 as earnings are expected to jump by ~12% next year. Overall, I don't think I'd have any issue with the company at these levels. It's being undergoing some consolidation since June and recently bounced off oversold levels.
Mat