FLEX or ROK: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

Investors with an interest in Electronics - Miscellaneous Products stocks have likely encountered both Flex (FLEX) and Rockwell Automation (ROK). But which of these two companies is the best option for those looking for undervalued stocks? Let's take a closer look.

There are plenty of strategies for discovering value stocks, but we have found that pairing a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system produces the best returns. The Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Both Flex and Rockwell Automation have a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) right now. 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 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.

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.

FLEX currently has a forward P/E ratio of 20.32, while ROK has a forward P/E of 33.41. We also note that FLEX has a PEG ratio of 1.53. 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. ROK currently has a PEG ratio of 2.70.

Another notable valuation metric for FLEX is its P/B ratio of 4.68. 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, ROK has a P/B of 12.08.

Based on these metrics and many more, FLEX holds a Value grade of B, while ROK has a Value grade of D.

Both FLEX and ROK are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks, but based on these valuation figures, we feel that FLEX is the superior value option right now.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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