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AFI vs. RYN: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in Building Products - Wood stocks are likely familiar with Armstrong Flooring and Rayonier (RYN - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks offers value investors a better bang for their buck right now? We'll need to take a closer look.

We have found that the best way to discover great value opportunities is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with a great grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system. The Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Right now, Armstrong Flooring is sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Rayonier has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This means that AFI's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. But this is only part of the picture 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 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.

AFI currently has a forward P/E ratio of 37.64, while RYN has a forward P/E of 44.33. We also note that AFI has a PEG ratio of 1.73. 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. RYN currently has a PEG ratio of 8.87.

Another notable valuation metric for AFI is its P/B ratio of 0.75. 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, RYN has a P/B of 2.30.

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

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


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