Back to top

Image: Bigstock

PPC or HRL: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Investors interested in stocks from the Food - Meat Products sector have probably already heard of Pilgrim's Pride (PPC - Free Report) and Hormel Foods (HRL - Free Report) . 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.

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.

Pilgrim's Pride has a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), while Hormel Foods has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) right now. The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that PPC has an improving earnings outlook. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

Value investors also try to analyze a wide range of traditional figures and metrics to help determine whether a company is undervalued at its 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.

PPC currently has a forward P/E ratio of 12.71, while HRL has a forward P/E of 26.15. We also note that PPC has a PEG ratio of 0.41. 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. HRL currently has a PEG ratio of 3.52.

Another notable valuation metric for PPC is its P/B ratio of 2.61. 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, HRL has a P/B of 3.68.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to PPC's Value grade of B and HRL's Value grade of C.

PPC has seen stronger estimate revision activity and sports more attractive valuation metrics than HRL, so it seems like value investors will conclude that PPC is the superior option right now.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Hormel Foods Corporation (HRL) - free report >>

Pilgrim's Pride Corporation (PPC) - free report >>

Published in