HOLX vs. SONVY: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

Investors interested in stocks from the Medical - Instruments sector have probably already heard of Hologic (HOLX) and SONOVA HOLDING (SONVY). But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

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 puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Currently, Hologic has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while SONOVA HOLDING has a Zacks Rank of #5 (Strong Sell). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that HOLX is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. 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.

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.

HOLX currently has a forward P/E ratio of 16.59, while SONVY has a forward P/E of 21.57. We also note that HOLX has a PEG ratio of 2.12. 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. SONVY currently has a PEG ratio of 3.27.

Another notable valuation metric for HOLX is its P/B ratio of 3.29. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. By comparison, SONVY has a P/B of 5.13.

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

HOLX sticks out from SONVY in both our Zacks Rank and Style Scores models, so value investors will likely feel that HOLX is the better option right now.

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

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