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JMPLY or AIQUY: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Chemical - Diversified sector have probably already heard of Johnson Matthey PLC (JMPLY - Free Report) and Air Liquide (AIQUY - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks is more attractive to value investors? We'll need to take a closer look to find out.

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.

Johnson Matthey PLC has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Air Liquide has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that JMPLY has an improving earnings outlook. But this is only part of the picture 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.

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.

JMPLY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 14.44, while AIQUY has a forward P/E of 26.35. We also note that JMPLY has a PEG ratio of 3.61. 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. AIQUY currently has a PEG ratio of 4.89.

Another notable valuation metric for JMPLY is its P/B ratio of 2.41. 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, AIQUY has a P/B of 3.65.

Based on these metrics and many more, JMPLY holds a Value grade of B, while AIQUY has a Value grade of C.

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


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