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POR vs. IDA: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Utility - Electric Power sector have probably already heard of PGE (POR - Free Report) and IdaCorp (IDA - 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.

Both PGE and IdaCorp have a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that both of these stocks have an improving earnings outlook since the Zacks Rank favors companies that have witnessed positive analyst estimate revisions. But this is only part of the picture for value investors.

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 Style Score Value grade factors in a variety of key fundamental metrics, including the popular P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a number of other key stats that are commonly used by value investors.

POR currently has a forward P/E ratio of 19.80, while IDA has a forward P/E of 22.59. We also note that POR has a PEG ratio of 6.31. 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. IDA currently has a PEG ratio of 8.13.

Another notable valuation metric for POR is its P/B ratio of 1.68. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. By comparison, IDA has a P/B of 2.12.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to POR's Value grade of B and IDA's Value grade of D.

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


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IDACORP, Inc. (IDA) - free report >>

Portland General Electric Company (POR) - free report >>