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Investors interested in Chemical - Diversified stocks are likely familiar with LSB (LXU) and Air Liquide (AIQUY). 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 Zacks Rank is a proven strategy that targets companies with positive earnings estimate revision trends, while our Style Scores work to grade companies based on specific traits.
LSB and Air Liquide are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that LXU likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than AIQUY has recently. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.
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.
Our Value category grades stocks based on a number of key metrics, including the tried-and-true P/E ratio, the P/S ratio, earnings yield, and cash flow per share, as well as a variety of other fundamentals that value investors frequently use.
LXU currently has a forward P/E ratio of 18.58, while AIQUY has a forward P/E of 24.57. We also note that LXU has a PEG ratio of 0.87. This popular figure is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also considers a company's expected EPS growth rate. AIQUY currently has a PEG ratio of 1.69.
Another notable valuation metric for LXU is its P/B ratio of 1.10. 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, AIQUY has a P/B of 3.87.
Based on these metrics and many more, LXU holds a Value grade of A, while AIQUY has a Value grade of D.
LXU is currently sporting an improving earnings outlook, which makes it stick out in our Zacks Rank model. And, based on the above valuation metrics, we feel that LXU is likely the superior value option right now.
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Lsb Industries Inc. (LXU) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Air Liquide (AIQUY) : Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).