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WAIR vs. BA: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in Aerospace - Defense stocks are likely familiar with Wesco Aircraft Holdings and Boeing (BA - 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.

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.

Right now, Wesco Aircraft Holdings is sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Boeing has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This means that WAIR's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

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.

WAIR currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10.02, while BA has a forward P/E of 20.24. We also note that WAIR has a PEG ratio of 0.84. 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. BA currently has a PEG ratio of 1.81.

Another notable valuation metric for WAIR is its P/B ratio of 1.16. 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, BA has a P/B of 511.15.

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

WAIR is currently sporting an improving earnings outlook, which makes it stick out in our Zacks Rank model. And, based on the above valuation metrics, we feel that WAIR is likely the superior value option right now.


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