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PUMP vs. CLB: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in Oil and Gas - Field Services stocks are likely familiar with ProPetro Holding (PUMP - Free Report) and Core Laboratories (CLB - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks is more attractive to value investors? We'll need to take a closer look to find out.

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 proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Both ProPetro Holding and Core Laboratories have a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) right now. The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that both of these companies have improving earnings outlooks. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

Value investors analyze a variety of traditional, tried-and-true metrics to help find companies that they believe are undervalued at their 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.

PUMP currently has a forward P/E ratio of 9.63, while CLB has a forward P/E of 34.34. We also note that PUMP has a PEG ratio of 0.64. 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. CLB currently has a PEG ratio of 2.58.

Another notable valuation metric for PUMP is its P/B ratio of 2.44. 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, CLB has a P/B of 19.48.

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

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


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