Investors looking for stocks in the Technology Services sector might want to consider either Acuity (AYI) or SPX Technologies (SPXC). 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 proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.
Right now, both Acuity and SPX Technologies are sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that these stocks have improving earnings outlooks. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.
Value investors are also interested in a number of tried-and-true valuation metrics that help show when a company is undervalued at its current share price levels.
The Value category of the Style Scores system identifies undervalued companies by looking at a number of key metrics. These include the long-favored P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that help us determine a company's fair value.
AYI currently has a forward P/E ratio of 18.29, while SPXC has a forward P/E of 31.72. We also note that AYI has a PEG ratio of 1.83. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. SPXC currently has a PEG ratio of 2.01.
Another notable valuation metric for AYI is its P/B ratio of 4.06. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. By comparison, SPXC has a P/B of 4.95.
These are just a few of the metrics contributing to AYI's Value grade of B and SPXC's Value grade of D.
Both AYI and SPXC are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks, but based on these valuation figures, we feel that AYI is the superior value option right now.
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Acuity, Inc. (AYI): Free Stock Analysis Report SPX Technologies, Inc. (SPXC): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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