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DVA 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 DaVita HealthCare (DVA - 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 emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Currently, DaVita HealthCare has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Chemed has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that DVA is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

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.

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.

DVA currently has a forward P/E ratio of 17, while CHE has a forward P/E of 28.83. We also note that DVA has a PEG ratio of 1.01. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. CHE currently has a PEG ratio of 2.88.

Another notable valuation metric for DVA is its P/B ratio of 2.57. 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, CHE has a P/B of 9.23.

These metrics, and several others, help DVA earn a Value grade of A, while CHE has been given a Value grade of C.

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


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