Back to top

Image: Bigstock

FII or EV: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Investors interested in Financial - Investment Management stocks are likely familiar with Federated Investors and Eaton Vance (EV - 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 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, Federated Investors is sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), while Eaton Vance 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 FII 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.

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.

FII currently has a forward P/E ratio of 12.05, while EV has a forward P/E of 12.80. We also note that FII has a PEG ratio of 1.32. 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. EV currently has a PEG ratio of 1.67.

Another notable valuation metric for FII is its P/B ratio of 3.76. 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, EV has a P/B of 4.39.

These metrics, and several others, help FII earn a Value grade of B, while EV has been given a Value grade of C.

FII has seen stronger estimate revision activity and sports more attractive valuation metrics than EV, so it seems like value investors will conclude that FII is the superior option right now.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Mast Global Battery Recycling & Production ETF (EV) - free report >>

Published in