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Investors interested in Business - Information Services stocks are likely familiar with INTERTEK GP (IKTSY) and FactSet Research (FDS). But which of these two companies is the best option for those looking for undervalued stocks? 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, INTERTEK GP has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while FactSet Research has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). 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. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.
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.
IKTSY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 18.43, while FDS has a forward P/E of 28.54. We also note that IKTSY has a PEG ratio of 3.03. 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. FDS currently has a PEG ratio of 3.25.
Another notable valuation metric for IKTSY is its P/B ratio of 5.44. 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, FDS has a P/B of 9.76.
These metrics, and several others, help IKTSY earn a Value grade of B, while FDS has been given a Value grade of D.
IKTSY sticks out from FDS in both our Zacks Rank and Style Scores models, so value investors will likely feel that IKTSY is the better option right now.
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INTERTEK GP (IKTSY) : Free Stock Analysis Report
FactSet Research Systems Inc. (FDS) : Free Stock Analysis Report