Investors with an interest in Utility - Electric Power stocks have likely encountered both AES (AES) and NRG Energy (NRG). 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.
We have found that the best way to discover great value opportunities is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with a great 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.
Right now, AES is sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while NRG Energy has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). Investors should feel comfortable knowing that AES likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than NRG has recently. But this is only part of the picture 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 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.
AES currently has a forward P/E ratio of 5, while NRG has a forward P/E of 16.71. We also note that AES has a PEG ratio of 1.44. 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. NRG currently has a PEG ratio of 1.48.
Another notable valuation metric for AES is its P/B ratio of 1. 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, NRG has a P/B of 13.34.
Based on these metrics and many more, AES holds a Value grade of A, while NRG has a Value grade of C.
AES stands above NRG thanks to its solid earnings outlook, and based on these valuation figures, we also feel that AES is the superior value option right now.
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The AES Corporation (AES): Free Stock Analysis Report NRG Energy, Inc. (NRG): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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