APELY vs. MRCY: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Computer - Peripheral Equipment sector might want to consider either Alps Electric (APELY) or Mercury Systems (MRCY). But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

Everyone has their own methods for finding great value opportunities, but our model includes pairing an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system with a strong Zacks Rank. The Zacks Rank is a proven strategy that targets companies with positive earnings estimate revision trends, while our Style Scores work to grade companies based on specific traits.

Alps Electric and Mercury Systems are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #5 (Strong Sell), respectively, right now. The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that APELY has an improving earnings outlook. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

Value investors analyze a variety of traditional, tried-and-true metrics to help find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.

Our Value category grades stocks based on a number of key metrics, including the tried-and-true P/E ratio, the P/S ratio, earnings yield, and cash flow per share, as well as a variety of other fundamentals that value investors frequently use.

APELY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10.64, while MRCY has a forward P/E of 21.60. We also note that APELY has a PEG ratio of 2.96. This popular figure is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also considers a company's expected EPS growth rate. MRCY currently has a PEG ratio of 12.63.

Another notable valuation metric for APELY is its P/B ratio of 0.54. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, MRCY has a P/B of 1.39.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to APELY's Value grade of B and MRCY's Value grade of F.

APELY is currently sporting an improving earnings outlook, which makes it stick out in our Zacks Rank model. And, based on the above valuation metrics, we feel that APELY is likely the superior value option right now.

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Alps Electric (APELY) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Mercury Systems Inc (MRCY) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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