What is a value stock? Many investors -- including Warren Buffett -- would say that both growth and value stocks are tied at the hip and that investors are just looking to buy shares in a company at a discount to the cash it will generate for shareholders.

However, Wall Street loves to categorize stocks as being in either the growth or the value camp. Value stocks are generally classified as stocks with a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio below the market average, while growth stocks are ones with fast-growing financials, regardless of what their earnings multiples are.

Even though these are arbitrary distinctions, it can be useful to own both growth and value stocks to balance out the volatility in your portfolio. This can be helpful psychologically when one category is experiencing a huge drawdown, dampening the impact on your portfolio in a bear market. Here are three value stocks that are smart buys this month. 

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Source Fool.com