CR or ATLKY: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?
Investors interested in stocks from the Manufacturing - General Industrial sector have probably already heard of Crane (CR) and Atlas Copco AB (ATLKY). But which of these two stocks is more attractive to value investors? We'll need to take a closer look to find out.
The best way to find great value stocks is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system. 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.
Crane and Atlas Copco AB are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #4 (Sell), respectively, right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that CR is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.
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.
CR currently has a forward P/E ratio of 21.31, while ATLKY has a forward P/E of 26.26. We also note that CR has a PEG ratio of 2.86. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. ATLKY currently has a PEG ratio of 3.28.
Another notable valuation metric for CR is its P/B ratio of 3.95. 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, ATLKY has a P/B of 7.85.
These metrics, and several others, help CR earn a Value grade of B, while ATLKY has been given a Value grade of D.
CR has seen stronger estimate revision activity and sports more attractive valuation metrics than ATLKY, so it seems like value investors will conclude that CR is the superior option right now.
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Crane Company (CR) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Atlas Copco AB (ATLKY) : Free Stock Analysis Report
