IKTSY vs. VRSK: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?
Investors looking for stocks in the Business - Information Services sector might want to consider either INTERTEK GP (IKTSY) or Verisk Analytics (VRSK). But which of these two stocks offers value investors a better bang for their buck right now? We'll need to 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 proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.
INTERTEK GP has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Verisk Analytics has a Zacks Rank of #4 (Sell) right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that IKTSY is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.
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.
The Style Score Value grade factors in a variety of key fundamental metrics, including the popular P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a number of other key stats that are commonly used by value investors.
IKTSY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 19.39, while VRSK has a forward P/E of 36.83. We also note that IKTSY has a PEG ratio of 2.66. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. VRSK currently has a PEG ratio of 3.52.
Another notable valuation metric for IKTSY is its P/B ratio of 5.89. 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, VRSK has a P/B of 88.61.
These are just a few of the metrics contributing to IKTSY's Value grade of B and VRSK's Value grade of D.
IKTSY 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 IKTSY is likely the superior value option right now.
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INTERTEK GP (IKTSY) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Verisk Analytics, Inc. (VRSK) : Free Stock Analysis Report
