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FCCY or CBU: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors with an interest in Banks - Northeast stocks have likely encountered both 1st Constitution Bancorp and Community Bank System (CBU - Free Report) . But which of these two companies is the best option for those looking for undervalued stocks? Let's 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 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.

Both 1st Constitution Bancorp and Community Bank System have 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 both of these companies have improving earnings outlooks. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

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.

FCCY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 15.61, while CBU has a forward P/E of 19.39. We also note that FCCY has a PEG ratio of 1.56. 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. CBU currently has a PEG ratio of 2.42.

Another notable valuation metric for FCCY is its P/B ratio of 1.60. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, CBU has a P/B of 1.88.

These metrics, and several others, help FCCY earn a Value grade of B, while CBU has been given a Value grade of D.

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


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