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NHYDY or ESAB: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Metal Products - Procurement and Fabrication sector might want to consider either Norsk Hydro ASA (NHYDY - Free Report) or Esab (ESAB - 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.

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.

Right now, Norsk Hydro ASA is sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Esab has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that NHYDY has an improving earnings outlook. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

Value investors also tend to look at a number of traditional, tried-and-true figures to help them find stocks 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.

NHYDY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 11.04, while ESAB has a forward P/E of 22.96. We also note that NHYDY has a PEG ratio of 0.71. 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. ESAB currently has a PEG ratio of 2.26.

Another notable valuation metric for NHYDY is its P/B ratio of 1.11. 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, ESAB has a P/B of 4.04.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to NHYDY's Value grade of A and ESAB's Value grade of D.

NHYDY stands above ESAB thanks to its solid earnings outlook, and based on these valuation figures, we also feel that NHYDY is the superior value option right now.


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