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PNTG vs. CHE: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors with an interest in Medical - Outpatient and Home Healthcare stocks have likely encountered both The Pennant Group, Inc. (PNTG - Free Report) and Chemed (CHE - Free Report) . But which of these two companies is the best option for those looking for undervalued stocks? Let's take a closer look.

Everyone has their own methods for finding great value opportunities, but our model includes pairing an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system with a strong Zacks Rank. 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, both The Pennant Group, Inc. and Chemed are holding a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that both of these companies have improving earnings outlooks. But this is just one piece of the puzzle 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 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.

PNTG currently has a forward P/E ratio of 20.16, while CHE has a forward P/E of 25.37. We also note that PNTG has a PEG ratio of 1.55. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. CHE currently has a PEG ratio of 2.88.

Another notable valuation metric for PNTG is its P/B ratio of 3.38. 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, CHE has a P/B of 9.85.

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

Both PNTG and CHE are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks, but based on these valuation figures, we feel that PNTG is the superior value option right now.


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